The traditional parts of speech : How did we arrive at the canonical eight? -- Nouns : Traditional classifications : Nouns generally ; Common nouns ; Proper nouns ; Count nouns ; Collective nouns ; Expressions of multitude ; Expressions of partition ; Mass nouns. Properties of nouns : Generally ; Case ; Number ; Gender ; Person. Plurals : Generally ; Adding "-s" or "-es" ; Plurals of proper nouns ; Nouns ending in "-f" or "-fe" ; Nouns ending in "-o" ; Nouns ending in "-y" ; Nouns ending in "-ics" ; Compound nouns ; Irregular plurals ; Borrowed plurals ; Plural form with singular sense ; Plural-form proper nouns ; Tricky anomalies. Case : Function ; Common case, nominative function ; Common case, objective function ; Genitive case ; The "of" -genitive ; Genitives of titles and names ; Joint and separate genitives. Agent and recipient nouns : Definitions; use ; Appositives: definition and use. Conversions : Nouns as adjectives ; Nouns as verbs ; Adverbial functions ; Other conversions -- Pronouns : Definitions and uses : "Pronoun" defined ; Antecedents of pronouns ; Clarity of antecedent ; Pronouns without antecedents ; Sentence meaning. Properties of pronouns : Four properties ; Number and antecedent ; Exceptions regarding number of the antecedent ; Pronoun with multiple antecedents ; Some traditional singular pronouns ; Gender ; Case ; Pronouns in apposition ; Nominative case misused for objective. Classes of pronouns : Seven classes. Personal pronouns : Form ; Identification ; Changes in form ; Agreement generally ; Expressing gender ; Determining gender ; Special rules ; Case after linking verb ; Case after "than" or "as-as" ; Special uses ; The singular "they". Possessive pronouns : Uses and forms ; Possessive pronouns vs. contractions. Reflexive and intensive pronouns : Compound personal pronouns: "-self" forms ; Basic uses of reflexive and intensive pronouns. Demonstrative pronouns : Definition. Reciprocal pronouns : Generally ;Simple and phrasal pronouns. Interrogative pronouns : Definition ; Referent of interrogative pronouns. Relative pronouns : Definition ; Gender, number, and case with relative pronouns ; Positional nuances ; Antecedent ; Remote relative clauses ; Omitted antecedent ; Relative pronoun and the antecedent "one" ; Function of relative pronoun in clause ; Genitive forms ; "Whose" and "of which" ; Compound relative pronouns ; "Who vs. "whom". Indefinite pronouns : Generally ; The indefinite pronoun "one". Adjectives : Types of adjectives : Definition ; Qualitative adjectives ; Quantitative adjectives ; Demonstrative adjectives ; Possessive adjectives ; Interrogative adjectives ; Distributive adjectives ; Indefinite adjectives ; Pronominal adjectives ; Proper adjectives ; Compound adjectives ; Relative adjectives. Articles as limiting adjectives ; Definition ; Definition article ; Definite articles and proper names ; Indefinite article ; Indefinite article in specific reference ; Choosing "a" or "an" ; Articles with coordinate nouns ; Effect on meaning ; Omitted article and zero article ; Article as pronoun substitute. Dates as adjectives : Use and punctuation. Position of adjectives : Basic rules ; After possessives ; Adjective modifying pronoun ; Predicate adjective ; Dangling participles ; Distinguishing and adjective from an adverb or participle. Degrees of adjectives : Generally ; Comparative forms ; Superlative forms ; Forming comparatives and superlatives ; Equal and unequal comparisons ; Noncomparable adjectives. Special types of adjectives : Participial adjectives ; Coordinate adjectives ; Phrasal adjectives ; Exceptions for hyphenating phrasal adjectives. Functional variation : Adjectives as nouns ; Adjectives as verbs ; Other parts of speech functioning as adjectives ; The weakening effect pf injudicious adjectives --Verbs : Definitions : Verbs generally ; Transitive and intransitive verbs ; Ergative verbs ; Dynamic and stative verbs ; Regular and irregular verbs ; Linking verbs ; Phrasal verbs ; Principal and auxiliary verbs ; Verb phrases ; Contractions. Infinitives : Definition ; Split infinitive ; Uses of infinitive ; Dangling infinitive. Participles and gerunds : Participles generally : Forming present participles ; Forming past participles ; Participial phrases ; Gerunds ; Gerund phrases ; Distinguishing between participles and gerunds ; Fused participles ; Dangling participles ; Dangling gerunds. Properties of verbs : Five properties : Voice : Active and passive voice ; Progressive conjunction and voice. Mood : Generally ; Indicative mood ; Imperative mood ; Subjunctive mood ; Subjunctive vs. indicative mood ; Present subjunctive ; Past subjunctive ; Past-perfect subjunctive. Tense : Generally ; Present tense ; Past indicative ; Future tense ; Present-perfect tense ; Past-perfect tense ; Future-perfect tense ; Progressive tenses ; Backshifting in reported speech. Tenses illustrated : Conjugation of the verb "to call" ; Conjugation of the verb "to hide" ; Conjugation of the verb "to be". Person : Generally. Number : Generally ; Agreement in person and number ; Disjunctive compound subjects ; Conjunctive compound subjects ; Some other nuances of number involving conjunctions ; Peculiar nouns that are plural in form but singular in sense ; Agreement of indefinite pronouns ; Relative pronouns as subjects ; "There is"; "here is" ; False attraction to intervening matter ; False attraction to predicate noun ; Misleading connectives: "as well as," "along with," "together with," etc. ; Agreement in first and second person. Auxiliary verbs : Generally ; Modal auxiliaries ;"Calm" and "could" ; "May" and "might" ; "Must" ; "Ought" ; "Shall" ; "Should" ; "Will" and "would" ; "Dare" and "need" ; "Do" ; "Have". Adverbs : Definition and formation : Generally ; Sentence adverbs ; Adverbial suffixes ; Adverbs without suffixes ; Distinguished from adjectives. Simple vs. compound adverbs : Standard and flat adverbs ; Phrasal and compound adverbs. Types of adverbs : Adverbs of manner ; Adverbs of time ; Adverbs of place ; Adverbs of degree ;Adverbs of reason ; Adverbs of consequence ; Adverbs of number ; Interrogative adverbs ; Exclamatory adverbs ; Affirmative and negative adverbs ; Relative adverbs ; Conjunctive adverbs. Adverbial degrees : Generally ; Comparative forms ; Superlative forms ; Irregular adverbs ; Noncomparable adverbs. Position of adverbs : Placement as affecting meaning ; Modifying words other than verbs ; Modifying intransitive verbs ; Adverbs and linking verbs ; Adverb within verb phrase ; Importance of placement ; Adverbial objective ; Adverbial clause ; "Only" --
Prepositions : Definition and types : Generally ; Simple, compound ; Phrasal prepositions ; Participial prepositions. Prepositional phrases : Generally ; Prepositional function ; Placement ; Refinements on placement ; Preposition-stranding ; Clashing prepositions ; Elliptical phrases ; Case of pronouns. Other prepositional issues : Functional variation ; Use and misuse of "like". Limiting prepositional phrases : Avoiding overuse ; Cutting prepositional phrases ; Cutting unnecessary prepositions ; Replacing with adverbs ; Replacing with genitives ;Using active voice -- Conjunctions : Definition and types ; Types of conjunctions: simple and compound ; Coordinating conjunctions ; Correlative conjunctions ; Copulative conjunctions ; Adversative conjunctions ; Disjunctive conjunctions ; Final conjunctions ; Subordinating conjunctions ; Special uses of subordinating conjunctions ; Adverbial conjunctions ; Expletive conjunctions ; Disguised conjunctions ; "With" used loosely as a conjunction ; Beginning a sentence with a conjunction ; Conjunctions and the number of a verb --Interjections : Definition ; Usage generally ; Functional variation ; Words that are exclusively interjections ; Punctuating interjections ; "O" and "oh" -- Syntax : Sentences, clauses, and their patterns : Definition ; Statements ; Questions ; Some exceptional types of questions ; Directives ; Exceptional directives ; Exclamations. The four traditional types of sentence structures : Simple sentence ; Compound sentence ; Complex sentence ; Compound-complex sentence. English sentence patterns : Importance of word order ; The basic SVO pattern ; All seven patterns ; Variations on ordering the elements ; Constituent elements ; Identifying the subject ; Identifying the predicate ; Identifying the verb ; Identifying the object ; Identifying complements ; Inner and outer complements ; Identifying the adverbial element. Clauses : In general ; Relative clauses ; Appositive clauses ; Conditional clauses. Ellipsis : Generally ; Anaphoric and cataphoric ellipsis ; Whiz-deletions. Negation : Negation generally ; The word "not" ; The word "no" ; Using negating pronouns and adverbs ; Using "neither" and "nor" ; Words that are negative in meaning and function ; Affix negation ; Negative interrogative and imperative statements ; Double negatives ; Other forms of negation ; "any" and "some" in negative statements. Expletives :Generally ; Expletive "it" ; Expletive "there". Parallelism : Generally ; Prepositions ; Paired joining terms ; Auxiliary verbs ; Verbs and adverbs at the outset ; Longer elements. Cleft sentences : Definition ; Types ; Uses -- Traditional sentence diagramming : History and description ; Benefits of diagrams ; Using diagrams ; Criticisms ; How diagrams work ; Baseline ; Subject ; Predicate ; Direct object ; Objective complement ; Indirect object ; Subjective complement ; One-word modifiers ; Prepositional phrases ; Adjective clauses ; Adverbial; clauses ; Noun clauses ; Infinitives ; Participles ; Gerunds ; Appositives ; Independent elements ; Conjunctions ; Diagramming compound sentences ; Diagramming complex sentences ; Diagramming compound-complex sentences -- Transformational grammar : Overview : Definition : Scope of section ; Terminology of transformational grammar ; Tools of transformational grammar ; Universal symbols in rules ; Tree diagrams. Base rules in transformational grammar : Parts of speech ; Sentence basics. Nouns and noun phrases : Functions of noun phrases ; Simple noun phrases. Determiners : Types of determiners ; Numeric and nonnumeric determiners ; Multiple determiners ; Determiners in noun phrases ; Prearticles ; Noun phrases with determiner and prearticle. Noun-phrase modifiers : Modifiers : Compound nouns ; Combined rules ; Number, person, and possession. Verb phrases : Introduction ; Functions of verb phrase ; Principal verbs ; Auxiliaries ; Auxiliary verbs ; "Have" ; Multiple auxiliaries ; "Be" as a principal verb. Different types of principal verbs : Generally ; Middle verbs ; Special subtypes. Adverbials : Adverbials with principal verbs ; Simple adverbs ;Functions of simple adverbs ; Prepositional phrase ass adverbial ; Noun phrases as adverbial ; Adverbials of place, time, and manner ; Number and tense of verbs. Transformations : Deep and surface structure ; Transformational rules ; Surface transformation ; Simple-question transformation ; Imperative transformation ; Active- to passive-voice transformation and back again. Spotting ambiguities : Identification ; Lexical ambiguity ; Surface-surface ambiguity ; Deep-structure ambiguity ; Active- and passive-voice diagrams -- Word formation : Generally ; Criteria for morphemes ; Free and bound morphemes ; Stems and affixes ; Inflectional and derivational suffixes ; Compounding ; Conversion ; Shortened forms ; Elongations ; Reduplicative forms ; Loan translations ; Acronyms and initialisms ; Neologisms --
Word usage : Introduction : Grammar vs. usage ; Standard written English ; Dialect ; Focus on tradition
Troublesome words and phrases : Good usage vs. common usage ; Using big data to asses linguistic change ; Preventative grammar ; Glossary of troublesome expressions
Bias-free language : Maintaining credibility ; Gender bias ; Other biases ; Invisible gender-neutrality ; Techniques for achieving gender neutrality ; Necessary gender-specific language ; Sex-specific labels as adjectives ; Gender-neutral singular pronouns ; Problematic suffixes ; Avoiding other biased language ; Unnecessary focus on personal characteristics ; Unnecessary emphasis on the trait, not the person ; Inappropriate labels
Prepositional idioms : Idiomatic uses ;Shifts in idiom ; Words and prepositions construed with them
Punctuation : Introduction
The comma : Using commas : With a conjunction between independent clauses ; After a transitional or introductory phrase ; To set off a nonrestrictive phrase or clause ; To separate items in a series ; To separate parallel modifiers ; To distinguish indirect from direct speech ; To separate the parts of full dates and addresses ; To separate long numbers into three-digit chunks ; To set off a name, word, or phrase used as a vocative ; Before a direct question inside another sentence ; To set off "etc.," "et al.," and the like at the end of a series ; After the salutation in an informal letter. Preventing misused commas : Not to separate a subject and its verb ; Not to separate a verb and its object ; Not to set off a quotation that blends into the sentence ; Not to set off an adverb that needs emphasis ; Not to separate compound predicates ; Not to use alone to splice independent clauses ; Not to use after a sentence-starting conjunction ; Not to omit after an internal set-off word or phrase ; Not to set off restrictive matter ; Not to name suffixes such as Jr., III, Ince., and Ltd. ; Not to separate modifiers that aren't parallel
The semicolon : Using semicolons : To unite two short, closely connected sentences ; To separate items in a complex series ; In old style, to set off exploration or elaboration. Preventing misused semicolons : Not where a colon is needed, as after a formal salutation ; Not where a comma suffices, as in a simple list
The colon : Using colons : To link matter and indicate explanation or elaboration ; To introduce an enumerated or otherwise itemized list ; To introduce a question ; Use a colon to introduce a question ; After the salutation in business correspondence ; To separate hours from minutes and in some citations ; Without capitalizing the following matter needlessly. Preventing misused colons : Not to introduce matter that blends into your sentence
Parentheses :Using parentheses : To set off inserted matter that you want to minimize ; To clarify appositives or attributions ; To introduce shorthand or familiar names ; Around numbers or letters when listing items in text ; To denote subparts in a citation ; Correctly in relation to terminal punctuation ; To enclose a brief aside. Preventing misused parentheses : Not before an opening parentheses
dash (or long dash) : Using em-dashes : To set off matter inserted midsentence ; To set off but emphasize parenthetical matter ; To tack on an important afterthought ; To introduce a specification or list ; To show hesitation, faltering, or interruption. Preventing misused em-dashes : Not using more than two in a sentence ; Not after a comma, colon, semicolon, or terminal period
The en-dash (or short dash) : Using en-dashes : In a range, to show tension, or to join equivalents. Preventing misused en-dashes : Not in place of a hyphen or em-dash
The hyphen : Using hyphens : To join parts of a phrasal adjective ; To mark other phrasal-adjective and suffix connections ; In closely associated compounds according to usage ; When writing out fractions and two-word numbers ; To show hesitation, stammering, and the like ; In proper names when appropriate ; In some number groups or when spelling out a word ; With "l-" suffixes (e.g., "-like") on words ending in "-ll". Preventing misused hyphens : Not after a prefix unless an exception applies ; Not in place of an em-dash, even when doubled ("
") ; Not with an "-ly" adverb and a participial adjective ; Not in a phrasal verb
The apostrophe : Using apostrophes : To indicate the possessive case ; To mark a contraction or signal dialectal speech ; To form plurals of letter, digits, and some abbreviations. Preventing misused apostrophes : Not to form other plurals, especially of names ; Not to omit obligatory apostrophes
Quotation marks : Using quotation marks : To quote matter of 50 or fewer words ; When using a term as a term or when defining a term ; When you mean "so-called" or "but-not-really" ; For titles of short-form works, according to a style guide ; To show internal quotation using single marks ; To signal matter used idiomatically, not literally ; Placed correctly in relation to other punctuation. Preventing misused quotation marks : Not for a phrasal adjective ; Not to emphasize a word or note its informality
The question mark : Using question marks : After a direct question. Preventing misused question marks : Not after an indirect quote
The exclamation mark : Using exclamation marks : After exclamatory matter, especially when quoting others. Preventing misused exclamation marks : Not to express your own surprise or amazement
The period : Using periods : To end a typical sentence, not a question or exclamation ; To indicate an abbreviated name or title ; Placed properly with parentheses and brackets ; To show a decimal place in a numeral. Preventing misused periods : Not with an abbreviation at sentence end
Brackets : Using brackets : In a quotation, to enclose matter not in the original ; In parenthetical matter, to enclose another parenthetical ; To enclose the citation of a source, as in a footnote. Preventing misused brackets : Not when a hyphen or en-dash would suffice
Bullets : To mark listed items of a more or less equal ranking
Ellipsis dots : Using ellipsis dots : To show that an unfinished sentence trails off ; To signal rumination, musing, or hesitation ; To signal an omission of matter within a quotation ; With following period, to show omission at sentence end ; With preceding period, to show omission after sentence. Preventing misused ellipsis dots : Omitting space or allowing a break between dots ; Beginning a quotation with ellipsis dots.
