Concrete Noun
You experience concrete nouns
through your five senses: sight,
smell, hearing, taste, and touch.
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Pronouns
Pronouns are used in place of a
noun that has already been
mentioned or known.
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Prepositional Phrases
a phrase that begins with a
preposition and ends in a noun,
pronoun, or noun phrase
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Abstract Noun
Abstract refer to emotions, ideas,
concepts, tenets, beliefs, or your
state of being.
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Adverbs
A word that describes or gives
more information about a verb,
adjective, adverb, or phrase.
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Gerunds
A word ending in "-ing" that is
made from a verb and used like a
noun
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Collective Nouns
A collective noun is the word used
to represent a group of people,
animals, or things.
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Prepositions
Prepositions are short words that
help us express location, time, and
other relationships.
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Conjunctions
Conjunctions are words that link
other words, phrases, or clauses
together.
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 Subject and Verb
Write S under the Subject(s), V under the Verb.

1) Kenny eats pancakes.

2) Lucas, Margene, and Omar are working as lifeguards this summer.
3) Omar is as talented as any contestant on American Idol.
4) Kenny’s little brown dog has no spots.
5) Heidi’s creativity makes her a great artist.
6) Failure is not an option.

Prepositional Phrases
Cross out the Prepositional Phrase and write S under the Subject and V under the Verb.

1) A large wicker basket of oranges, pears, and apples sits in the center of the table.
2) According to the latest report from the county’s top environmental engineer, the widespread use of

pesticides on lawns, trees, and shrubs has contaminated several local rivers and streams.
3) Habitual tardiness, as well as poor attendance, is a cause for discipline.
4) Harold and Kumar’s new puppy, one of a litter of nine poodles, barks all night.

Find and Correct the Error

1) Although whole grains and proteins are essential to good health, the abundance of vitamins,

antioxidants, and fiber in fresh fruits and vegetables, especially leafy greens and berries, make fresh

produce the foundation of any healthful diet.

2) The International Red Cross announced today that a swarm of locusts have invaded southeastern Niger,

where millions of people are still suffering from food shortages caused by last year’s infestation.
3) A shortage of dentists, as well as the inability to pay for dental care and high rates of tobacco use, have

led to widespread oral health problems in some of the state’s more rural counties.
4) Every Thanksgiving Diego bakes a pecan pie, and his cousin Yvonne makes a green bean casserole, but

the stuffing, roasting, and carving of the turkey is always left to Diego’s father, who is a respected chef

and cookbook author.

Singular: Each and Every

1) Each lion and tiger has its own cage at the zoo.
2) Every student and teacher carries an identification card.
3) ____________________________________________________________________________________

Singular: Collective Nouns

 agency band orchestra public
family group club community
audience board panel society
firm jury collection company
union class partnership staff
faculty team council crowd

Find and correct the errors.

1) The restaurant’s chef is extraordinarily talented and his food is terrific, but the restaurant’s staff of

aspiring actors and models treat the customers like unwelcome house guests.
2) The prosecutor had argued that the videotape shows the defendant robbing the bagel shop, but the

jury of eight men and four women were unimpressed with the grainy and distorted footage and found

the defendant not guilty.

Singular or Plural: OR AND NOR

When two subjects are separated by or or nor, the verb must agree with the subject that is closer to the
verb.
Fix the Error: Robert often tells us that he earned a degree in political science from Harvard in 2005, but

neither the dean of academic affairs nor the professors in the political science department remembers him

Singular: Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns such as everybody, anyone, someone, and nothing are singular and take singular verbs.
Ignore intervening phrases.
Fix the Error: Everybody except the very young, the elderly, and the chronically ill have been placed on a
waiting list for the flu shot.
Singular: Number of / Percentage of
The number of and the percentage of always take singular verbs.
Fix the Error: Although a typical trip to Antarctica costs more than $9,000 and the conditions on the Antarctic
continent are harsh and turbulent, the number of visitors to Antarctica have quadrupled in the last decade.

Subject and Object

Write S under the Subject(s), V under the Verb, and O under the Object.

1) He went to the movies, but I went home.

2) She rescues cats.
3) Are they selling the car?
4) Omar called me.
 5) Harlan and Kim visited us last Thursday.
6) I asked Carrie to call him and her.
7) Marjorie called them last Thursday.

Fix the Error

1) After Ariana fell on stage, fracturing her big toe, her and the other principal dancers informed the
artistic director that they would not perform again until the ballet company fixed the rickety stage and
paid Ariana’s hospital bill.
2) My sister Louise and me will attend the University of Washington in the fall: Louise plans to major in
computer science and pursue a career as a programmer, while I intend to study theater and become an
actress.

Objects of Prepositions

Pronouns that are the objects of prepositions should be in the objective case.
from them
to us
between him and us
with her and him
by me
Fix the Error: The frequent disagreements between my father and I have ruined many family dinners and
affected my relationship with my mother, who leaves the room every time my father and I argue.

Pronouns after THAN or AS

Use than I or as I when shortened from than I am, than I did, than I have, as I am, as I did, or as I have. Apply
this rule to he, she, they, and we as well.

WRONG Omar is a much better tennis player than me.

RIGHT Omar is a much better tennis player than I [am].

WRONG I hope you are as happy as her when you go to college.

RIGHT I hope you are as happy as she [is] when you go to college.

WRONG I baked more cupcakes than him.

RIGHT I baked more cupcakes than he [did].

Fix the Error: Although the judges have not yet announced the winners of the talent contest, Spiro and I expect
to lose because the singing jugglers put on a much better show than us.
 Ambiguous Pronouns

A pronoun must clearly refer to a specific noun in the sentence. If a pronoun could refer to more than one noun
in the sentence, the pronoun reference is ambiguous.

Fix the Errors

1) When the police officers brought the suspects to the police station, the detective questioned them
thoroughly.
2) After arguing for two years about the unsightly pile of scrap metal on Bill’s front lawn, Bill and his
neighbor finally agreed that he should clean up the mess and take the scrap metal to the junkyard.
3) Simon’s lawyer advised Janice that she needs to be in the courtroom when the jury announces its
verdict.

Singular: Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns such as everyone, everything, somebody, and anything are singular and take singular
pronouns.
Fix the Error: Anyone who wants to try out for the tennis team on Saturday should be at the courts by 9:00
a.m., bring their own racquet, and wear non-marking tennis shoes.

Vague Pronouns
Which, this, that, these, those, it, and they must refer to something specific.

During the historic Apollo 11 mission, which is famous for Neil Armstrong’s walk on the moon, they
collected twenty-two kilograms of geologic material, including fifty lunar rocks.
Fix the Errors
1) When Harold worked at Subway, he treated the customers rudely, forgot to bake the bread, and threw
tomato slices at the manager, which angered Subway’s owner.
2) My mother wanted my brother Jerome to major in economics or finance and become an entrepreneur,
but he never demonstrated any aptitude for it.
3) In response to a dare from his classmates, Sam threw an orange at the English teacher’s head and then
pulled the fire alarm. The principal reacted angrily, but Sam’s father thought this was hilarious.

WHO is for PEOPLE; WHICH is for THINGS

Who should be used to refer to people; which should be used to refer to things.
Fix the Error: The army hospital is hiring doctors, nurses, and surgical assistants which have experience in
emergency medicine and rehabilitative care.

Pronoun Shifts

Pronouns should be consistent unless the context requires a shift.

Fix the Error: If you are a serious student of American history and enjoy visiting historic places, one should
walk the Freedom Trail, a paved walking trail that connects sixteen significant Revolutionary War sites in
Boston.

WHO orWHOM?

Who is used as a subject; whom is used as an object. Use whom when it is the object of a preposition.
1) Marcus is going to the beach with Britney and Keisha, each of [who] [whom] is a certified lifeguard
2) Dr. Haddad is the professor [who] [whom] is an expert in nanotechnology.
3) Twenty-five percent of voters have not decided [who] [whom] they will support in the general election.
4) The producer will choose the actor [who] [whom] has the best audition.