Download pptx - Chapter 3 writing better sentences

Writing Better Sentences

Grade 10

Writing Better Sentences In this chapter you will learn to write better

sentences by choosing better words. Better sentences will help your readers understand your ideas quickly and easily. Words that are carefully chosen move your writing in the right direction. Specific words add interest to this plain sentence:▪ I rode the bus to school.▪ On Saturday, I rode the early bus to art school.

The added words give details. They state the idea more clearly. As you read this chapter, you will learn to use nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, and prepositional phrases in your sentences

Goals for Learning

To replace nouns with pronouns To use plural and possessive nouns

correctly To improve sentences by adding

adjectives and adverbs To use adjectives and adverbs to

make comparisons To use prepositional phrases in

sentences

Key Vocabulary Words

Antecedent The noun that a pronoun replaces

Masculine Relating to males Feminine Relating to females Gender Masculine or feminine Possessive noun A word that shows

ownership or a relationship between two things

Personal pronoun A pronoun that refers to a person or a thing


Apostrophe (’) A punctuation mark that you use to show a noun is possessive

Adjective A word that describes a noun or pronoun

Thesaurus A book that lists words and their synonyms

Synonym A word that has the same meaning as another word

Adverb A word that answers questions about a verb, an adjective, or another adverb; it tells when, how, how often, where, or to what degree


Positive form The form of an adjective or adverb that you use to describe one person or thing

Comparative form The form of an adjective or adverb that you use to compare two people or things; formed by adding –er to the positive form or by adding the word more

Superlative form A form of an adjective or adverb that you use to compare three or more people or things; formed by adding –est to the positive form or by adding the word most

Prepositional phrase A group of words made up of a preposition and a noun or pronoun; it works like an adjective or an adverb in a sentence

Preposition A word that shows a relationship between a noun or pronoun (its object) and other words in a sentence

Replacing Nouns with Pronouns

Lesson 3-1

Objectives

To use pronouns to replace nouns in sentences

To identify the antecedent of a pronoun

To recognize the gender of a noun or pronoun

To identify singular and plural nouns and pronouns

Replacing Nouns with Pronouns When you speak or write, you use nouns to

name people, places, things, and ideas. It would be awkward to use the same noun several times in a sentence. Instead, you use a pronoun. A pronoun replaces a noun in a sentence. An antecedent is the noun that the pronoun replaces.

EXAMPLE 1▪ Amber and Amber’s mother go to pottery class.▪ Amber and her mother go to pottery class.

The pronoun her replaces Amber’s. The antecedent is Amber’s.

Replacing Nouns with Pronouns You cannot use a pronoun until you have

identified the noun. If there is no antecedent, the listener or reader will not know who or what you are talking about.

EXAMPLE 2▪ No Antecedent GivenBrandon saw it yesterday.

(saw what?)▪ Antecedent Given Brandon saw the movie yesterday.

He liked it. In the second sentence, you know what Brandon

saw. The pronoun it has an antecedent. The antecedent is movie. The pronoun is not always in the same sentence as the antecedent.

Replacing Nouns with Pronouns

There are two rules to remember:Rule 1 A pronoun must have an

antecedent.Rule 2 A pronoun must agree with

its antecedent.

Practice A

Find the antecedent for each pronoun in bold. Write the pronoun and its antecedent on your paper. Derek read about a national park in Kentucky.

It is called Mammoth Cave. “I would like to see this cave,” he said. “Tell me about it,” Brandon said. “A river runs through the cave’s lowest level,”

Derek told him. “We should plan to visit this cave,” Brandon

said.

Gender and Number

Nouns are words that name people, places, things, or ideas. Some nouns that name people show gender. Gender tells if the noun is masculine or feminine. Masculine nouns refer to males. Feminine nouns refer to females. Some pronouns are also masculine or feminine.

EXAMPLE 3▪ Masculine Brandon, man, boy, uncle, father, he, him, his▪ Feminine Sonia, woman, girl, aunt, mother, she, her,

hers▪ No Gendertable, mountain, city, pencil, it, they

Gender and Number

Rule 3 A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in gender. EXAMPLE 4▪ Derek went to the movies. He saw a comedy.▪ Amber has a dog named Rex. She loves that

dog!▪ The bell rang. It signaled that class had

begun.

Gender and Number

Replace plural nouns with they, them, or their. It does not matter whether the noun is a group of men, women, or things. EXAMPLE 5▪ Ten families came. They brought their own

food.▪ The store is open now. It stays open all night.

Practice B

Change the words in bold to pronouns. Write the new sentence on your paper. Amber and Sonia went to Amber and Sonia’s

class. Ms. Ruiz had given Ms. Ruiz’s class an

assignment. “Did everyone do the assignment?” asked Ms.

Ruiz. “Amber did,” Sonia said. “Derek has Derek’s

work, too.” “Aren’t Amber and Derek wonderful,” laughed

Luis.

Gender and Number

Rule 4 A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number. If the antecedent is singular, the pronoun is singular. If the antecedent is plural, the pronoun is plural. Singular Pronouns: I, you, he,

she, it Plural Pronouns: we, you, they

Practice C

In each sentence, a pronoun does not agree with its antecedent. Write each sentence correctly on your paper. Springfield has a park that their people

love. The park is off Main Street. They are

behind the pool. Three fields are there. It is for playing

soccer. The coaches are nice, and everyone likes

it. Each team should bring their own

equipment.

Subject, Object, or Possessive Noun

Nouns have different purposes in sentences. The pronoun that replaces a noun depends on the noun’s purpose. You can use a noun as a subject or an object. You can also use the possessive form of a noun. A possessive noun shows ownership or a relationship between two things.

EXAMPLE 6▪ Subject Sonia enjoys music. She enjoys music.▪ Object Amber e-mailed Sonia. Amber e-mailed

her.▪ Possessive The violin is Sonia’s. The violin is hers.

Subject, Object, or Possessive Noun

The table below lists personal pronouns. A personal pronoun refers to a person or a thing. Use the table to find the correct pronoun to replace a noun. A pronoun that replaces a possessive noun is called a possessive pronoun.Subject Object Possessive

Singular

First person I me my, mine

Second person

you you your, yours

Third person he, she, it him, her, it his, her, hers, its

Plural

First person we us our, ours

Second person

you you your, yours

Third person they them their, theirs

Practice D

Decide which pronoun completes each sentence. Refer to the table above. Write the new sentence on your paper. Derek and Brandon are friends. ____

enjoy soccer. “What time should ____ leave?” asked

Brandon. “What time is good for ____?” Derek

replied. “The coach told ____ to be at the field at

6:00.” “____ likes to start practice on time.”

Lesson 3-1 Review

Replace the noun in bold with the correct pronoun. Write the new sentence on your paper.

Until Derek was a junior in high school, Derek did not study enough.

Amber told Derek to study harder to get better grades.

Amber told him the work was worthwhile. Derek found a quiet place where Derek like to

study. With all of these effort, Derek’s grades improved

a lot.

Lesson 3-1 Review

Decide which pronoun completes each sentence. Write the sentence on your paper.

Derek and Brandon live in Springfield. ____ like their town.

Derek and ____ family have lived there for many years.

Sonia Moreno enjoys the violin. She plays ____ in the orchestra.

Amber, Derek, and Brandon love soccer. ____ play as much as possible.

Sonia’s cousin Luis is fun to be around. ____ is always telling jokes.

Using Plural and Possessive Nouns

Lesson 3-2

Objectives

To identify possessive nouns and plural nouns

To write possessive nouns and pronouns correctly


People often confuse the possessive and plural forms of a noun because they sound alike. A possessive noun shows ownership or a relationship between two things. Always use an apostrophe (’) when you write a possessive noun. EXAMPLE 1▪ Plural Noun Possessive Noun

The members meet here. A member’s house is nearby.My cousins live in Toronto. My cousin’s house is brick.

Practice A

Decide if each noun in bold is plural or possessive. Write plural or possessive on your paper. Both teams met at the stadium. Where is the poodle’s leash? Everyone in Eliza’s class liked learning

Spanish. These are my running shoes. California’s weather is usually warm.


Here are the rules for writing possessive nouns:

Rule 1 Make a singular noun possessive by adding ‘s. EXAMPLE 2▪ Brandon’s book is gone.▪ Ms. Ruiz’s class meets in the morning.▪ The principal’s office is a busy place.


Rule 2 Make a plural noun possessive by adding only an apostrophe. EXAMPLE 3▪ The students’ papers are not finished.▪ The boys’ locker room needs to be cleaned.▪ Both cities’ problems are the same.


Rule 3 If a plural noun does not end in –s, add an s after the apostrophe. EXAMPLE 4▪ People’s opinions about this vary.▪ Our children’s jackets still fit them.▪ The women’s team is practicing.

Practice B

Decide whether each bold possessive noun is singular or plural. Write singular or plural on your paper. Brandon’s room is painted green. What time is the teachers’ meeting? The students answered the teacher’s

questions. Men’s shirts are on sale. The dancers’ feet hurt.


A possessive pronoun does not have an apostrophe. EXAMPLE 5▪ The dog’s bone is buried. Its bone

is buried.▪ I love Brandon’s house. I love his

house.▪ Amber and Sonia’s friend came. Their

friend came.

Practice C

Replace each bold possessive noun with the correct possessive pronoun. Write the new sentence on your paper. Where are Derek’s running shoes? Brandon looked everywhere for

Amber’s car keys. The players’ equipment was scattered

everywhere. Rex lost Rex’s tennis ball. Luis’s and Sonia’s mothers are sisters.

Practice D

Write each sentence on your paper. Add the correct possessive pronoun. After school, Derek goes to ____ job at

the gas station. It is a good job, and the workers like ____

boss. Ms. Lenz started ____ business five years

ago. She has six employees on ____ staff. The station is open late. ____ closing

time is 10 PM.

Practice E

Read each pair of nouns. The first one is singular, and the second one is plural. Write the possessive form of each word on your paper.Example: loaf, loavesAnswer: loaf’s, loaves’ child, children man, men family, families shelf, shelves goose, geese

Lesson 3-2 Review

Each sentence has a mistake in the use of possessive and plural nouns. Write the sentence correctly on your paper. The Tuckers home is on Third Street. Both team’s were ready for the big event. Childrens’ toys were on the floor. My neighbors cat climbed a tree. The fire department brought some ladder’s.

Lesson 3-2 Review

Replace each possessive noun in bold with the correct possessive pronoun. Write the new sentence. Amber’s dog Rex chased her neighbor’s cat up a

tree. The cat’s fur stood on end. Derek heard the cat’s meowing from across the

street. Mrs. Chin is Amber and her mother’s neighbor. The fire department will rescue Mrs. Chin’s cat.

Adding Adjectives and Adverbs

Lesson 3-3

Objectives

To use adjectives and adverbs in sentences

To choose specific adjectives and adverbs

To know the purpose of a thesaurus

Adding Adjectives and Adverbs An adjective describes a noun or pronoun. An

adjective tells how many, what kind, or which ones. Look at the adjectives in Example 1. Thing about the question each adjective answers.

EXAMPLE 1▪ How Many? one book, few athletes, three flowers▪ What Kind? heavy book, strong athletes, purple

flowers▪ Which Ones? Mia’s book, those athletes, other

flowers Mia’s is the possessive form of Mia. A

possessive noun act as an adjective.


Adjectives add details to sentences. Adjectives often appear in front of the words they describe. EXAMPLE 2▪ The teenager ate a plate of food in gulps.▪ The hungry teenager ate a huge plate of

hot food in four gulps.

Practice A

The nouns in each sentence are in bold. Write the sentence again. Add an adjective for each noun. The family planted a tree in the yard. In class, the girl did a somersault. Sonia likes apples with peanut butter

on them. The man ate the sandwich. The dog ate a bowl of food.

Adding Adjectives and Adverbs Help your readers form sharp pictures by

using specific adjectives. Specific means exact or detailed. Avoid vague adjectives such as good, nice, bad, and pretty. Vague means general. EXAMPLE 3

Vague SpecificIt was a nice day. It was a sunny, breezy day.The fruit tasted good. The fruit tasted juicy and

fresh.

Adding Adjectives and Adverbs A thesaurus is a book that lists words and

their synonyms. A synonym is a word with the same meaning as another word. A thesaurus can help you find more specific words to replace a vague word. Choose the synonym that has the meaning you want. EXAMPLE 4

Vague More Specific Synonyms for Bada bad storm dangerous, threatening, severea bad dog mischievous, stubborn, viciousa bad taste sickening, bitter, sour

Practice B

Replace each adjective in bold with a more specific one. Use a thesaurus if possible. Write the new sentence on your paper. Use your imagination! My best friend is nice. The sky looks nice. Write a good sentence. The team had a bad game. Those flowers are pretty.

Adding Adjectives and Adverbs An adverb tells more about a verb, an

adjective, or another adverb. Adverbs often give details about actions. An adverb can tell when, how, how often, or where. Look at the adverbs in Example 5. Thing about the questions each adverb answers.

EXAMPLE 5▪ When? Today we will shop early and eat later.▪ How? Read slowly and carefully. Write clearly.▪ How Often? Fees are paid weekly. Check in daily.▪ Where? Put your umbrella there. We will go outside.


Each adverb in Example 5 tells more about a verb. Adverbs also answer questions about an adjective or another adverb. Such adverbs tell about degree. EXAMPLE 6

To What Degree? Amber was extremely worried. Rex ran too quickly. He was almost lost.

Practice C

Each adverb is in bold. Decide what question each adverb answers. Write one of these choices on your paper: when, how, how often, where, or to what degree. Immediately, the door slammed shit. The bell rings hourly. That group is especially busy. The baby smiled happily. We looked everywhere for the keys.


You can add variety to sentences by moving adverbs around. Notice the adverb in the sentences in Example 7. EXAMPLE 7▪ Turtles often move slowly.▪ Often, turtles move slowly.▪ Turtles move slowly, often.

Practice D

Find the adverb in each sentence. Move the adverb to a different place in the sentence. Write the new sentence on your paper.

The Tennis Tournamentby Brandon Tucker

I entered the tennis tournament and actually thought I might win.

My serve has been strong lately. “I will certainly win at least a few games,” I told myself. The match was over quickly. I lost, but my friends immediately congratulated me for

trying.

Lesson 3-3 Review

Complete the sentences by adding specific adjectives. Write the new sentences on your paper. The ____ artist created a ____ sculpture. I am looking for ____ shoes. The morning air feels ____ and ____. Would you like some ____ bread? Some dancers can do ____ jumps.

Lesson 3-3 Review

Find the adverb in each sentence. Move the adverb to a different place in the sentence. Write the new sentence. Amber gracefully danced across the stage. Brandon sometimes does his homework in

his room. Rex, the beagle, bravely guarded the

house. The book disappeared mysteriously. Sonia has not been to the movies lately.

Comparing with Adjectives and Adverbs

Lesson 3-4

Objectives

To use adjectives and adverbs to make comparisons

To use the comparative and superlative forms of adjectives and adverbs

To recognize irregular adjectives and adverbs

To avoid double comparisons


You can use adjectives and adverbs in your sentences to make comparisons. Each adjective and adverb has three forms: positive, comparative, and superlative.

Rule 1 Use the positive form to describe one person or thing. Use the comparative form when you compare two people or things. Use the superlative form to compare more than two people or things.

Positive Brandon is tall. Comparative Brandon is taller than Derek. Superlative Brandon is the tallest one in his family


Rule 2 For most one-syllable and two-syllable words, add –er or –est to the positive form.

Positive Comparative Superlativeyoung younger youngestwise wiser wisestfast faster fastesthappy happier happiest


Rule 3 For words of more than one syllable, use more and most or less and least.

Positive Comparative Superlativebeautiful more beautiful most beautifulexpensiveless expensive least expensive


Rule 4 When an adjective ends in –y, change the y to I and add –er or –est.

Positive Comparative Superlativeeasy easier easiestsilly sillier silliestpretty prettier prettiestearly earlier earliest

Practice A

Choose the correct form of the adjective in parentheses. Write the sentences on your paper. That dress is the ____ one I have ever

seen. (beautiful) That dress is ____ that the on the one.

(expensive) “Soccer is ____ than tennis,” said

Brandon. (easy) Derek is the ____ runner on his team.

(fast) Fruit is ____ than cookies. (healthy)

Irregular Adjectives and Adverbs A few adjectives and adverbs have irregular

comparative and superlative forms.Positive Comparative Superlativegood, wellbetter bestbad, badly worse worstmany, much more mostlittle less least

EXAMPLE 1▪ Incorrect Today I feel even badder than yesterday.▪ Correct Today I feel even worse than yesterday.

Irregular Adjectives and Adverbs The words good and well have different

meanings as adjectives. You use good when you mean something is desirable or likeable. You use well when you mean the opposite of sick. Well is also an adverb. However, do not use good as an adverb. It is only used as an adjective.

EXAMPLE 2▪ The Adjective Well I feel well today.▪ The Adjective Good I thought the poem was good.▪ The Adverb Well I played well in today’s game.▪ Incorrect Use of Good I played good in today’s

game.

Practice B

Choose the correct form of the word in parentheses. Write the sentence on your paper. Of these three books by Agatha Christie, I liked

this one ____. (good/well) That was the ____ movie ever made! (bad) Luis played very ____ in the chess tournament.

(good/well) ____ rain fell this month that last month. (little) ____ rain falls in July than in December.

(many/much)

Avoiding Double Comparisons Avoid double comparisons. Add either the

ending –er or the word more, but not both. Add either the ending –est or the word most, but not both. Do not add an ending if you are using less or least to make a comparison. EXAMPLE 3▪ Incorrect This car is the most cleanest it’s ever

been!▪ Correct This car is the cleanest it’s ever been!▪ Incorrect Which instrument is less noisier?▪ Correct Which instrument is less noisy?

Practice C

Find the mistake in each sentence. Write the sentence correctly on your paper. Today’s lunch was more gooder than

yesterday’s. Summer is the most laziest time of the

year. Which of these two brands is more

cheaper? The worsest storm of the year hit the

coast. Stores hire more people for their most

busiest season.

Lesson 3-4 Review

Find the mistake in each sentence. Write the sentence correctly on your paper. Brandon’s tennis serve is more better than

Derek’s. Does Computer Village have the most lowest

prices? Which of these two computers is least expensive? Amber is older than Sonia, but Sonia is the tallest. “I just had the horriblest day of my life,”

announced Sonia.

Lesson 3-4 Review

Find the mistake in each sentence. Write the sentence correctly on your paper. Celery tastes deliciouser than broccoli. My puppy is young, but Amber’s puppy is

youngest. Who is the wiser of them all? These decorations are the fancier ones we’ve

ever had! Amber writes more good than most people

do.

Adding Prepositional Phrases

Lesson 3-5

Objectives

To identify prepositional phrases in sentences

To recognize the parts of a prepositional phrase

To use prepositional phrases in sentences


A prepositional phrase is a group of words made up of a preposition and a noun or pronoun. A prepositional phrase works like an adjective or adverb in a sentence.

A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition. A preposition is a word that shows a relationship between a noun or a pronoun and other words in a sentence.


Common Prepositions

about at for on

across behind from out

after between in over

against beyond into to

among by near under

around during of with


A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition. It ends with a noun or a pronoun. EXAMPLE 1

over the river from a friendin the middle

When you use a preposition with a pronoun, the pronoun must be the object form. EXAMPLE 2

to him from them with her

Adding Prepositional Phrases Other words may come between the

preposition and the noun or pronoun. EXAMPLE 3▪ He woke up during the cold, dark, and rainy

night.

A sentence may include more than one prepositional phrase. EXAMPLE 4▪ A letter from my cousin in Montreal appeared

in my mailbox.

Practice A

Write each prepositional phrase on your paper. Some sentences have more than one. The girl in the middle of that photo is my

sister. Look for prepositional phrases in this

sentence. Derek put his tools under the car in the

garage. He works at the gas station two days a

week. Sonia left a message for him on his

answering machine.

Adjective Phrases

Prepositional phrases are also called adjective phrases and adverb phrases. An adjective phrase describes a noun or pronoun in a sentence. EXAMPLE 5▪ Adjective The middle boy is my

cousin.▪ Adjective Phrase The boy in the

middle is my cousin.

The phrase in the middle describes the noun boy.

Practice B

Each sentence contains an adjective phrase in bold. Find the noun that the adjective phrase describes. Write the noun on your paper. We read a poem by Edgar Allan Poe. The letter from Karen was short. How often is the rodeo in Centerville

held? A house near a highway can be noisy. Would you like fruit salad with

peaches?

Practice C

Think of a prepositional phrase to add after each noun in bold. The phrase must describe that noun. Write the new sentence on your paper.Example: That man is my uncle.Answer: The man in the blue suit is my uncle.

George Washington was the first president. The capital is Quebec City. The man won the race. The building is 10 stories high. Amber received a birthday card.

Adverb Phrases

An adverb phrase answers a question about a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. EXAMPLE 6▪ Adverb He arrived later.

(arrived when?)▪ Adverb Phrase He arrived at night.

(arrived when?)

Practice D

The verb of each sentence is in bold. Find the adverb phrase that answers a question about the verb. Write the adverb phrase on your paper.Example: Amber met Rene at the mall.Answer: at the mall We read the poem by ourselves. Columbus reached the island in 1492. The girls drove to Centerville. The dog walked with a limp. He arrived by plane.

Adverb Phrases

An adverb phrase can also be an adverb of degree. EXAMPLE 7▪ Adverb We are very sorry.

(sorry to what degree?)▪ Adverb Phrase We are sorry beyond

measure.(sorry to what degree?)

Practice E

Think of a prepositional phrase to add after each verb or adjective in bold. The phrase must tell where, how, how often, when, or to what degree. Write the new sentence on your paper. Amber walked. Her dog Rex barked. She arrived late for dinner. Amber called Sonia. Their homework was difficul!

Adverb Phrases

Think about where you place prepositional phrases in your sentences. In general, place an adjective phrase close to the word it describes. Vary your sentences by putting adverb phrases in different positions. EXAMPLE 8▪ Amber Choy went to her locker between

classes.▪ Between classes, Amber Choy went to her

locker.

Adverb Phrases

Place a prepositional phrase where it will not confuse the reader. EXAMPLE 9▪ Confusing We learned how to use a mirror to

reflect light in our science class.▪ Clear In our science class, we learned

how to use a mirror to reflect light.

Practice F

Find the prepositional phrase in each sentence. If the sentence is clear, write clear on your paper. If the sentence could be confusing, move the prepositional phrase and rewrite the sentence.

The smells are wonderful in Grandmother’s kitchen. The friends talked about the party in the hallway. The audience left the theater after the first act. The apartment has a big hall closet with two

bedrooms. A woman spoke to our class from Sweden.

Lesson 3-5 Review

Find the prepositional phrases in the sentences. Some sentences have more than one. Write each phrase. Amber bought a thesaurus at a store in

Springfield. A thesaurus has lists of words in alphabetical

order. Words with similar meanings are synonyms. A thesaurus gives synonyms for each word. It may list words with opposite meanings, too.

Lesson 3-5 Review

Each prepositional phrase is in bold. Decide whether it is an adjective phrase or adverb phrase. Write adjective phrase or adverb phrase on your paper. Amber scored a goal during the soccer

game. The other players on the team cheered. The team was happy about winning. The coach took them to a pizza place. They celebrated their victory with joy.