GrammarA Refresher Course…

UP Educators’ Circle

Train. Teach. Touch lives.Prepared by: Edwin Del Rosario

and lessons on (UP) life, love, and leisure.

Y does we need too studied grammar?!...

• The very fact that you were able to notice corrections from the question above imply something about how geared (or “un-geared”) you are in terms of grammar.

• Bukod sa ang balarila ay maituturing na pinakabasal nayunit ng isang wika, isang mahalagang papel naginagampanan nito ang pagiging isang sistema napinagbabatayan ng wikang tumatangkilik rito.

Why do we need to study grammar?

• The very fact that you were able to notice corrections from the question above implies something about how geared (or “un-geared”) you are in terms of grammar.

• Bukod sa ang balarila ay maituturing na pinakabasal nayunit ng isang wika, isang mahalagang papel naginagampanan nito ang pagiging isang sistema napinagbabatayan ng wikang tumatangkilik dito.

Grammar and UPCAT

• Language Proficiency (together with Reading Comprehension, Mathematics, and Science)

• English and Filipino

• Multiple Choice

• 90 items to be answered in 90 minutes.

• Your ticket to an “Isko-lastic” college life!

Grammar and UPCAT• Identifying and Correcting Errors/

Pagtukoy at Pagtama sa Kamalian

• Subject-Verb Agreement

• Verb Tenses

• Spelling Errors

• Dangling Modifiers

• Faulty Parallelisms

• Run-on Sentences

• Vocabulary

• Semantic Relations

• Figures of Speech

Subject-Verb Agreement Gender

(lalaki, babae, lalaki at babae,

hindi nakasaad, walang kasarian)Number

(isa, dalawa, marami)

Person

(sarili, ibang tao)

GENERAL RULE

Singular subjects take singular verbs (except for “you” and “I”) while plural subjects (plus “you” and “I”) take plural verbs.

GENERAL RULE

Singular subjects take singular verbs (except for “you” and “I”) while plural subjects (plus “you” and “I”) take plural verbs.

These white mice are pets.

You (give, gives) me a reason to dream again.

A good student (allot, allots) a lot of time for his academic life.

Bong Revilla (is, are) a senator who is convicted with counts of plunder.

Modified Subject and Verb; Subject with Accompaniment, Appositve and a Verb; Intervening Words

Use a verb that agrees with the subject instead of the modifier of the subject.

The clown with the sad eyes looks pathetic.

Since his love for his gadgets (is, are) greater than his love for his girlfriend, he broke up with her.

Her knowledge of languages (aids, aid) her to write a very good essay.

Books written by J.K. Rowling (is, are) better than all the books in the Twilight series.

(verb should refer to clown, not eyes)

(verb should refer to love, not gadgets)

(verb should refer to books, not J.K. Rowling)

(verb should refer to knowledge, not languages)

A student from UP, as well as students from other state colleges and universities, (is, are) called an “Isko” or “Iska” (short for Iskolar ng Bayan)

(verb should refer to student from UP, not students from other state colleges and universities)

Here and There; Verbs and Subject Order

Here and there introduce the verb-subject order. The verb agrees with the subject following it.

Beyond those buildings is a skating rink.

Here (is, are) the questions I asked myself after you left.

There (is, are) the books we need to study in order to pass UPCAT.

Up in the sky (lies, lie) my hopes and dreams.

(verb should refer to skating rink, not buildings)

(verb should refer to questions)

(verb should refer to hopes and dreams, not sky)

(verb should refer to books)

Indefinite Subject and Verb

Each of the answers is correct.

Some of the fruits are ripe.

None of the love (was, were) true.

All government funds (is, are) taken by the corrupt officials.

(verb should be plural because of fruits)

(verb should refer to funds)

none with mass noun = singularnone with count noun = singular or pluralall/some with mass noun = singularall/ some with count noun = plural

each

one

everybody

no one

nobody

anyone

anybody

someone

somebody

every

another

little

much

SINGULAR

few

many

several

both

others

PLURAL

none

some

all SINGULAR or PLURAL

Everybody is eager to join the club.

Both of the children were exhausted.

(verb should refer to love)

Some things (is, are) better left unsaid.(verb should refer to things)

Compound Subjects

Regular Compounds Closely Related Compounds

Each/ Every Either-or/ Neither-nor

plural singular singular depends on the nearer subject

The teacher and the students prepare for the upcoming entrance examination.

Macaroni and cheese isan easy dish to make.

Each boy and girl hasthe responsibility to be a good citizen of the world.

Neither the tape nor the pins were holding the pieces together.

UP, ADMU, DLSU, and UST (is, are) considered the “Big Four” universities in the Philippines.

Coffee and cream (is, are) the usual beverage for busy college students.

Every course and field of study in college (is, are) essential to nation building.

Neither cramming norrelying on luck alone (helps, help) in acing entrance examinations.

My girlfriend and my best friend (loves, love) me.

My girlfriend and best friend (loves, love) me.

I hope that every girl and friend (loves, love) me.

Either my girlfriend or my best friends (loves, love) me.

Other Things You Need to Know

Singular Plural Singular or PluralTime

WeightMeasurement

Amounts of Money

“The number”

Titles

Arithmetical Operations

“A number”

Adjectives

Fractions (depends on the of-phrase)

Collective Nouns(one unit = singular, individual members =

plural)

Nineteen is the age where one understands everything. (Ramon Bautista)

The number of UPCAT passers is quite low.

She’s Dating a Gangster is now adapted in the big screen.

My ego divided by a heartbreak is shattered identity.

A number of UPCAT passers with high UPG are reconsidered by other UP units.

The happiest are often the people who suffered the most.

One-seventh of the students pass the dreaded UPCAT. (verb refers to students)

Only three-tenths of the Philippine population has the capacity to seek regular medical consultation. (verb refers to population)

The committee is unable to decide on a vacation spot.

The team have disappointment because of their opposing views. (notice the use of their)

Identifying Errors/ Pagtama sa mga MaliEnglish Filipino

Double Negatives

Verb Tenses

Subjunctive Mood (If… then)

Redundancy

Improper use of Verb, Preposition, Pronouns, etc.

Dangling Modifiers

Parallelism

Run-on Sentences

/r/ and /d/

ng at nang

maling gamit ng salita

Double Negatives

A double negative occurs when two forms of negation are used in the same sentence.Ex. verb (can not, did not, will not); pronoun (nothing, nobody); adverb (never, hardly)

Sentences with double negatives are not ALWAYS an error. They should only be corrected only if the speaker intends to elicit negative sense.

David could not hardly believe his luck when he won the lottery.

(either “David could not believe his luck…” or “David hardly believes his luck…”)

I didn’t do nothing.

(either “I didn’t do anything” or “I did do nothing.”)

No one wouldn’t pass the examination if you take it for granted.

(either “Anyone would not pass the…” or “No one would pass the…”)

Subjunctive Mood

The subjunctive mood is the verb form used to express a wish, a suggestion, a command, or a condition that is contrary to fact; sometimes, things in subjunctive mood is not likely going to happen in reality.

Verbs that (often) attract subjunctive mood: ask, command, demand, insist, order, recommend, suggest, and wish. Read more at http://www.grammar-monster.com/glossary/subjunctive_mood.htm#uAGpgLjKb7VwAfWs.99

If I were given the chance, I will choose to visit my relatives in Bohol.

(If I were given the chance, I would choose to visit my relatives in Bohol.)

What would you insist should you be elected as the next President of the Philippines?(You can answer with “If I were elected as…., then I would insist that…” or As the next President, I insist that…)

If you were given the opportunity to date a fictional character, who would it be and why?

Redundancy

Redundancy means superfluity or using words unnecessarily or using words for a second time.

Read more at: http://www.english-for-students.com/Redundancy.html

I would rather buy my own books rather than borrow from the library.(I would rather buy my own books than borrow from the library.)(I would buy my own books rather than borrow from the library.)

If all us cooperate together, we will succeed.

The ATM machine was broken by the time I went there.

The tuition fee in UP is relatively lower than those of private schools but is a bit costly for a state-funded university.

A variety of different things can be learned from experiencing a heartbreak.

The end result of someone being a torpe is not being able to admit to the person he/she loves.

Improper Pronoun Use

Remember that a pronoun should always agree with its antecedent in terms of person, number gender, and case.

A. The antecedent of the pronoun should be clear to avoid confusion.Anne Curtis wants to talk with Jasmine about her drinking problems. (Does “her” refer to Anne or Jasmine?)

it’s vs. itsthey’re vs. their

vs. therehe’s vs. his

B. Take note of the differences among these words!

theirs vs.

there’sthis vs. these who’s vs. whose

C. Personal pronouns as object of the preposition should be on its objective case.Among us students, those that strive for his or her own improvement are often rewarded with self-confidence.You and I wouldn’t want to be like them vs. Just between you and me, I would want to be like them.

D. A pronoun situated before a gerund should be in the possessive case.My talking here would not be effective if you were not listening.Her fighting for the welfare of the masses was my reason why I fell for her.

Improper Preposition Use

Read more: http://www.grammar.net/prepositions

Improper Preposition UseRead more: http://www.grammar.net/prepositions and http://www.perfectyourenglish.com/grammar/preposition-errors.htm

in on atcity, town, state, country streets, avenue, boulevards exact address

inexact period of time holiday period of day or night (daytime, night)

days of the week exact time

date (month, day, year) or (month, day)

between vs.

amongsince vs. for

beside vs.

besidesby vs. with

‘by the side of’ vs. ‘aside

from’

two entities vs. more than two entities

beginning vs. duration

doer vs. instrument

Order of Adjectives

article/ the + number – intensifier – quality – size – age – color – proper noun used as adjective - noun

an extremely hard, massive, unforgettable heartbreak

the eight, great, heroic, large provinces that ignited a series of revolution against Spaniards

a very fierce, tall, young, kayumanggi, Filipino college student

a very difficult, mind-boggling, nerve-wracking, big examination

Verbs and the Action of Love

loved loves will/ shall love

was/were loved is/are loving will/shall be loving

had loved has/have lovedwill/ shall have

loved

had been lovinghas/have been

lovingwill/shall have been loving

PAST PRESENT FUTURE

Simple

Progressive/

Continuous

Perfect

Perfect

Progressive

completed in the past

habitual or repeated action

happening in future time

past action simultaneous with another event in

the past

ongoing action continuing action in the future

took place in the past before

another past action

action began in the past and completed or continued at

present

action that should be completed before another future action

Other Guidelines on Verbs

A. Remember that the past form of some irregular verbs is not the same as the past participle (pp).

B. A modal, as well as do-verbs (do, does, did), should be accompanied with a verb in its base form.

C. When using a verb that is past progressive, the other verb that interrupts the action must be in its simple past.

I was studying for finals when my friend came over my room to play.When the bell rang, the students were going out of the classroom.

ex. (begin – pp is begun, not began), (speak – pp is spoken, not spoke), (do – pp is done, not did)

ex. (could come, not can came), (does sing, not does sings), (did enjoy, not did enjoyed), (must take)

Dangling/ Misplaced Modifiers

A dangling modifier is a modifier that has nothing to modify. Remember, modifiers describe a word or make its meaning more specific. A dangling modifier is an error caused by failing to use the word that the modifier is meant to be describing.

Read more at http://www.grammar-monster.com/glossary/dangling_modifier.htm#rJ5QDQqEftoP1U2g.99

Wailing unceasingly, her dead father was found yesterday.(It’s as if the “dead father” was the one who was wailing unceasingly.)

Hoping to pass the test, an intensive review was prepared.(It’s as if the “intensive review” was the one who was hoping to past the test.)

Having read your letter, my cat will stay indoors.(Having read your letter, I will let my cat stay indoors.)

Vicious smelly creatures with huge tusks, the ship's crew found it difficult to drive the male walruses from the beach.

(It’s as if the crew members were “vicious, smelly creatures with huge tusks”)(The ship's crew found it difficult to drive the male walruses, vicious smelly creatures with huge tusks, from the beach.)(Vicious smelly creatures with huge tusks, the male walruses were driven difficultly from the beach by the ship’s crew.)

Parallelism

Parallelism is a balance within one or more sentences of similar phrases or clauses that have the same grammatical structure.

Read more at: http://www.myenglishpages.com/site_php_files/grammar-lesson-parallelism.php#.U7cNhrEjaT0

We have things to do, people to see, and places that should be visited.(It can be “places to visit”)

Going home is better than to stay here.(“staying here”)

(“concentration”)Strength, agility, and carefully concentrating make a successful basketball player.

Kadalasang Mali sa Filipino

Bisitahin ang “Tamang Balarila” Album ni Jpaul Marasigan sa Facebook para sa iba pang kadalasangmali sa Filipino

(https://www.facebook.com/jpaul13/media_set?set=a.10151050306946147.488121.745041146&type=1)