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The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation

Category: Nouns

What Are Indefinite Nouns?

Posted on Wednesday, September 18, 2024, at 6:00 am

We use nouns in American English to identify persons, places, things, states of being, and qualities. Our noun references might also be specific or nonspecific. Examples I saw the car. (specific) I saw the BMW four-door sedan. (specific) I saw a car. (nonspecific) In the first sentence, we explain we saw a particular car. It …

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Verbals: Definition & Examples

Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2023, at 6:00 am

English includes words that look and sound like verbs but are not serving a sentence as such. You likely hear them often: You said you like skydiving? What about cliff jumping? The door was closed, so I couldn't hear them—their voices were muffled. Alexander said their plan is to escape. Each underlined word is an …

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What Is Apposition in Grammar?

Posted on Wednesday, March 22, 2023, at 6:00 am

In writing and in speech, we will often include information that further specifies or identifies what we are communicating: Caleb's son, Richard Jane Doe, the mayor Linus, Lucy's brother When we include this extra information, we are using what is known in grammar as apposition. We also refer to these additional details as appositives. Apposition …

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Objective Case: Usage and Examples

Posted on Wednesday, February 22, 2023, at 6:00 am

When we refer to case in English grammar, we indicate the form that a noun or pronoun takes according to its function in a sentence. The three cases in English are subjective, objective, and possessive. This review will center on the objective case. What Is the Objective Case? The objective case is the case we …

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What Is the Vocative Case in English?

Posted on Wednesday, January 18, 2023, at 6:00 am

Would you please hand me that flower vase, my dear? Joaquin, how much rice does the recipe call for? You know, my friend, I'm not sure if we're going to make it on time. Most of us are familiar with expressions like these. We might also communicate in similar ways when writing salutations such as …

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Predicate Nouns: Usage and Examples

Posted on Wednesday, December 14, 2022, at 6:00 am

Michelangelo was a painter. Mr. Yao is a mathematician. Her favorite gifts are roses. In each of these sentences, we have a subject, a verb (more specifically, a linking verb), and another noun. The second noun in each sentence renames or identifies the subject noun (Michelangelo = painter, Mr. Yao = mathematician, gifts = roses). …

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Object Complements: Usage and Examples

Posted on Wednesday, December 7, 2022, at 6:00 am

Those who speak, write, and study English are typically familiar with how nouns are enhanced by adjectives and other nouns, such as appositives and subject complements. Examples The brown satchel belongs to the lawyer. (adjective describing the subject noun, satchel) Jenna is a lawyer. (subject complement renaming the subject noun, Jenna) My sister Jenna, a …

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Nominative Case: Usage and Examples

Posted on Wednesday, November 30, 2022, at 6:00 am

Case in English concerns the function that a word performs in relation to other words in a sentence. In older English, grammar referred to the nominative case (subject), the accusative case (direct object), the dative case (indirect object), and the genitive case (possessive form). (Current English refers more often to three cases: subjective, objective, and …

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Subject Complements: Usage and Examples

Posted on Wednesday, November 9, 2022, at 6:00 am

The word complement in English means "something that completes or makes perfect; either of two parts or things needed to complete the whole." A subject complement in English describes or renames a sentence subject and completes the sense of the verb by means of an adjective, a noun, a pronoun, a possessive noun or pronoun, …

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Subjective Case: Usage and Examples

Posted on Wednesday, October 5, 2022, at 6:00 am

Case in English grammar involves the forms that nouns and pronouns take to indicate their function. The three cases in English are subjective, objective, and possessive. In this discussion, we'll review the subjective case. What Is the Subjective Case? The subjective case is the case we use for a noun or a pronoun that is …

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