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GRAMATICAL TERMINOLOGY

The grammar term in this list are to be used by student as a reference.

Certainly, other grammar reference books might be used with different 3. VERB
terminology; however, these terms, and definitions of them are the ones
which will be used by the teacher during this course. A verb is a word which indicates action or is used in description.

1. NOUN A CONJUGATED VERB shows tense and agrees with the subject.

A noun is the name of a person, place or thing. I speak She speaks

You speak We speak
Susanto
Yogyakarta 4. ADJECTIVE
a table
An adjective describes a noun
2. PRONOUN
a beautiful woman
A pronoun takes the place of a noun. the colorful candles

Susanto ……. he/ him/ his

Yogyakarta ……. it / its
a girl ……. she / her
5. ADVERB

NOMINA ACCUSATI POSSESSI POSSISS REFLEKSIVE An adverb answers the question “how, where, when and why”. It describes a
TI VE VE IVE verb, an adjective or another adverb.
VE
subjectiv (object (adjecti (pronouns) Santosa speaks quickly. (how?)
e ive) ve) Susan lives there. (where?)
I’ll see you tommorrow. (when?)
I me my mine myself That young girl is extremely intelligent. (how?).
you you your yours yourself Joshua pronouns English words rather badly (how?).
he him his his himself
she her her hers herself 6. PREPOSITION
we us our ours ourselves
they them their theirs themselves A preposition is a word which is used with noun, pronoun, or gerund to form a
it it its its itself phrase.

He’s worried about the test.

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Juju is interested in meeting that handsome boy. 10. ARTICLE
My books are on the table.
Please give this message to him. An article is used with nouns.
DEFINITE INDEFINITE
7. Present Participle / GERUND The A / An

A present participle is the “ing” form of the verb which may be used in certain
verb tenses or as a noun (and occasionally as an adjective).
Adi is climbing that very high mountain.
Mountain climbing can be dangerous, so it is sometimes a terrifying
experience.
Ali is skiing in the Red Deer valey.
Both Ani and I enjoy skiing during the winter.
8. PAST PARTICIPLE
11. PHRASE
A Phrase is a group of words which must not include a conjugated verb.
My friend is waiting outside the building
Because of feeling ill, Bob couldn’t go to work last week.
After a few minutes, our friends arrived.
We often go to school by bus.
The girl wearing the red blouse is my best friend.
That building with those modern, expensive skylights was designed by a
famous architect.
The Jones want to save enough money to buy a new car.
Surfing in the Pacific Ocean is a popular past time.
To speak a second language fluently is quite an accomplishment.

past participle is a verb form which may be used in certain verb tenses or as 12. CLAUSE
an adjective.
A clause is a group of words which must contain a conjugated verb.
We have seen that man behind the counter several times. (a). A MAIN CLAUSE is a complete thought.
They had eaten before their guests arrived. Susi has lived in Jakarta all her life.
I was very interested in that speech. (b). A SUBORDINATE CLAUSE is an incomplete thought. Therefore, it is a
That window over there is broken. dependent clause which must have a main clause with it to complete idea.

9. INFINITIVE After Sally ate breakfast,…………………

…………….even though he didn’t study very hard.
An infinitive is a verb form which is the base form of the verb preceded by If we save enough money, ………………
“to”. …………….because she was angry with her boyfriend.

I want to speak to your boss. 13. SUBORDINATOR

We’ve decided to go to Jakarta next week.
To get a good education is our goal of most student. A subordinator begins a subordinate clause. Study this list of subordinators:
To get a good education, you have to give a great deal of effort.
when (just) as that because *in spite of (phrase)

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before who although since *because of When two main clauses are together in one sentence, they must be joined by a
(phrase) conjuction (and, but, so, or, nor, for, yet). Sometimes a comma precedes this
after which even though so that conjuction.
as soon as whom if
while whose unless Peter wants to move into bigger apartment, but he can’t afford to pay more rent.
until
*These two expressions begin subordinate phrases with nouns, pronouns or *If you see:______________________, so _________________ you should know
gerunds. that you need two main clauses.

14. THE USE OF COMMAS

The use of commas with main and subordinate idea is very important,
learning these rules can help TOEFL student a great deal.

When subordinate idea precedes the main clause, there will be a comma
between them. However, when the order is reversed, there is no comma. If
any subordinate idea which provides extra information interrupts or follows a
main clause, there should be commas both before and after to indicate that it
is unnecessary information. Therefore, you should always know what the
main clause of a sentence is.

SUBORDINATE, MAIN
MAIN SUBORDINATE
MAIN ,SUBORDINATE, MAIN
MAIN , UNNECESSARY ADJECTIVE CLAUSE OR PHRASE

*N.B. There should never be commas between SUBJECT – VERB –

OBJECT unless they are interrupted by a phrase or clause providing extra
information which will have commas before and after it.

The boy who is standing at the door is my cousin.

The price of the sugar, which is already high, is getting higher day by day.
To be a good salesman is Ted’s goal.
To be a good salesman, you must have an outgoing personality.

15. JOINING MAIN CLAUSES.

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