Grammarics' Pictorial Guide Volume 1 Sample Pages

7/30/2019 Grammarics' Pictorial Guide Volume 1 Sample Pages

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/grammarics-pictorial-guide-volume-1-sample-pages 1/17

42 concepts

covered

http://www.grammarics.com/buy/



© 2012-13 Grammarics.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced,

stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by

any means, without the prior written permission of the

authors, except in the case of brief quotations employed in

critical articles or reviews.

The authors have made every effort to ensure the accuracy

of the information herein. However, the information

contained in this book is sold without warranty, eitherexpress or implied. Neither the author, nor its dealers or

distributors, will be held liable for any damages caused

either directly or indirectly by the instructions contained in

this book.

Version 1.1



Introduction

Grammarics are pictorial representations of rules of English

grammar, punctuation and word usage.

Grammarics was created to overcome the problems that people

face in learning English grammar.

All of the rules are explained through pictorial

representations to create visual reinforcement and also to

provide an element of fun to the learning process.

The concepts have been explained in an easy-to-

understand language, with minimal use of technical terms.

Instead of creating a tome, we have focused on only those

concepts that are commonly confused by most people.

This e-book contains pictorial explanations for 42 concepts acrosspunctuation, grammar, and word usage that are commonly

confused by people.

This is the first volume of our e-book series. Please visit our

website http://www.grammarics.com and subscribe to our blog to

receive updates on future releases.

If there are any errors, then please point it out to us by writing to

us at [email protected].

We would greatly appreciate it if you could send us your feedback

at [email protected].

http://www.grammarics.com/

mailto:[email protected]



















Content (Page 1 of 2)

1. Comma In Direct Address 07

2. The Oxford Comma 08

3. Apostrophes To Show Possession 09

4. Apostrophes In Plurals of Nouns 10

5. Singular vs. Plural Possession 11

6. Joint vs. Separate Possession 12

7. Excessive Use Of Exclamation Points 13

8. Misplaced Modifiers 14

9. Dangling Modifiers 15

10. Faulty Comparisons 16

11. Subject-Verb Agreement: Singular Subjects Joined By And 17

12. Subject-Verb Agreement: Plural Subjects Joined By And 18

13. Subject-Verb Agreement: Singular Subjects Joined By Or / Nor 19

14. Subject-Verb Agreement: Plural Subjects Joined By Or / Nor 20

15. Vague Pronoun Reference 21

16. Correct Use of Only 22

17. Correct Use of Almost 23

18. Correct Use of Literally 24

19. You’re vs. Your 25

20. It’s vs. Its 26

21. They’re vs. There vs. Their 27



22. Less vs. Fewer 28

23. Irregardless 29

24. Loose vs. Lose 30

25. Who vs. Whom 31

26. Stationary vs. Stationery 32

27. Lie vs. Lay 33

28. Emigrate vs. Immigrate 34

29. A lot vs. Alot 35

30. As well vs. Aswell 36

31. Device vs. Devise 37

32. Desert vs. Dessert 38

33. Dairy vs. Diary 39

34. Weak vs. Week 40

35. Gorilla vs. Guerrilla 41

36. Ascent vs. Assent 42

37. Brake vs. Break 43

38. Peak vs. Peek 44

39. Hanger vs. Hangar 45

40. License vs. Licence 46

41. Practice vs. Practise 47

42. Inquiry vs. Enquiry 48

Content (Page 2 of 2)





Comma In Direct Address1

8© www.grammarics.com

Let’s eat, Grandpa. Let’s eat Grandpa.

In a nutshell

Commas are used to set off names (or words used in place of names) when

addressing people directly in a sentence. Follow these rules for applyingcommas in direct address.

If the name comes first, it is followed by a comma.

Grandpa, I want to eat a truck-load of ice.

Sam, I want to eat a truck-load of ice.

If the name comes at the end of the sentence, the comma precedes the

name.

I want to eat a truck-load of ice, Grandpa.

I want to eat a truck-load of ice, Sam.

If the name comes in the middle of the sentence, surround it with

commas.

What I said, Grandpa, is that I want to eat a truck-load of ice.

What I said, Sam, is that I want to eat a truck-load of ice.

Back To Content



The Oxford Comma2


With the Oxford comma Without the Oxford comma

In a nutshell

The Oxford comma (also known as serial comma or Harvard comma) is a

comma that is used before and/or in a list containing three or more items.

I like to eat nails, glass, and shoes.

I hate people who do not like to eat nails, glass, or shoes.

In some cases, the Oxford comma helps avoid ambiguity in a sentence.

I would like to thank my parents, Nelson Mandela and Dalai Lama.

[Without the Oxford comma, it would appear as if Nelson Mandela and DalaiLama are the parents of the writer.]

The Oxford comma is a highly debated topic among grammarians. For every

six proponents of the Oxford comma, you will find half-a-dozen opponents.

Use your judgement – use the Oxford comma if it helps avoid ambiguity in a

sentence.

Among those who came to watch the show

were the president’s two daughters,

Bill Clinton, and George Bush.

Among those who came to watch the show

were the president’s two daughters,

Bill Clinton and George Bush.

Back To Content



Joint vs. Separate Possession6


John and Henry’s dogs. John’s and Henry’s dogs.

In a nutshell

If you’re trying to show possession and you have two subjects, you have to

decide if the two subjects possess something together or separately.

If the two subjects share the possession (joint possession), then you use only

one ’s at the end of the second subject. In the first sentence, ’s is applied only

after Henry, since John and Henry jointly possess the dogs.

If the two subjects possess the item separately, then you use ’s at the end of

each subject. In the second sentence, ’s is applied after Henry, as well as

John, since the dogs are owned separately by each of them.

Back To Content



Misplaced Modifiers8


Covered with hot melting

cheese I ate the pizza.

I ate the pizza covered with

hot melting cheese.

In a nutshell

To modify is to change or add to the meaning of another word. A modifier is a

word or group of words that does this.

Modifiers need to be used carefully, else they may cause unintended humor

or confusion. Modifiers are like teenagers – they fall in love with whatever

they are next to.

The golden rule of placing modifiers: place the modifier as close as is possible

to the word or phrase that it seeks to modify (this will solve the issue in mostcases).

In the above sentence, covered with hot melting cheese (the modifier) seeks

to modify pizza and not the person eating it. Placing the modifier closer to

the word pizza clarifies that the pizza, and not I, is covered with hot melting

cheese.

Back To Content



Faulty Comparisons10


Sally’s dog, like Emily, has

long drooping ears.

Sally’s dog, like Emily’s, has

long drooping ears.

In a nutshell

Faulty comparisons occur when two things are compared inappropriately or

in a way that could confuse readers / listeners.

Often, the comparison will sound as though it's acceptable, but will be

missing a few necessary words.

The shirt you are wearing looks like my brother.

[Here, the shirt is being compared to the brother and not to the

brother’s shirt.]

The shirt you are wearing looks like my brother’s.

The shirt you are wearing looks like my brother’s shirt.

[Both of the above forms are correct. The 's after brother refers to the

brother's shirt and therefore, it is correct.]

Back To Content



Correct Use Of Literally


In a nutshell

The word literally means actually. It's used to indicate that something is being

described the way it happened, without any exaggeration.

Don’t use the word literally to gain emphasis or for added effect. It should be

used to convey facts.

If you want to use a word to create emphasis, try figuratively or metaphorically.

It is raining cats and dogs. It is literally raining cats and dogs.

18

Back To Content



Emigrate vs. Immigrate


Emigrate Immigrate

In a nutshell

To emigrate is to leave your country to reside in another country.

To immigrate is to enter and reside in a new country.

Mnemonic: people who emigrate exit a country, and both emigrate

and exit start with e.

28

Back To Content



Desert vs. Dessert


Desert Dessert

In a nutshell

Desert (with one s) is a dry, arid place.

Dessert (with two s’s) is a sweet dish that’s had at the end of a meal.

Mnemonic: The two s’s in dessert stand for sweet stuff.

32

Back To Content



http://www.grammarics.com/buy



http://www.pinterest.com/grammarics

http://plus.google.com/u/0/b/108740183727920813190/

http://www.facebook.com/grammarics

http://www.twitter.com/grammarics


Documents

Grammarics' Pictorial Guide Volume 1 Sample Pages