Six Essentials of English Grammar for Spanish Speakers

What we will learn

1. The names of different types of words.

2. The function of words in sentences.

3. The order of words in sentences and questions

1. Types of words Noun: names a person, place, thing,

abstract idea (and more) Verb: shows an action (run, eat, buy) or

a state (be, have, like) Adjective: describes/modifies a noun Adverb: tells how, when, where, how

often about the verb Conjunction: joins two clauses together

NOUNS (Types of words)

Noun: names a person, place, thing, abstract idea (and more) Two types of noun are very important for you to recognize.

COUNT NOUNS

Most nouns have a singular and plural form: key/keys, church/churches, cat/ cats, child/children.

NON-COUNT NOUNS

Some do not: weather, water, luck

NOUNS (Types of words)

Nouns are often marked by these words:a, an, the, some

I’d like an apple.Can you make some rice for the party?

my, your, his, her, our, theirThe professor liked my journals. They sold their house.

this, that, these, thoseWatch out. That water is hot.

VERBS (Types of words)

Verb: shows an action (run, eat, buy) or a state (be, have, like)

Verbs have four forms: 1 2 3 4call called called calling eat ate eaten eating

1 = base form2 = simple past3 = past participle (-ado, -ido in Spanish)4 = present participle

VERBS (Types of words)

Verb: have different forms for past: I ate lunch at noon yesterday.simple present: I eat lunch at noon every day.present progressive: I am eating lunch right now.future: I am going to eat in an hour.future: I ’ll see you tomorrow.

ADJECTIVES (Types of words)

Adjective: describes/modifies a noun

Adjectives often end in these suffixes:beautiful, curious, windy, dependable.

ADJECTIVES (Types of words)

Adjective: describes/modifies a noun.

Many adjectives show degree:small, smaller than, the smallest of all

beautiful, more beautiful than, the most beautiful of all

ADVERBS (Types of words)

Adverbs: tell how, when, where, how often about the verb

How: He walked quickly.When: He walked in the morning.Where: He walked to school.All: He walked to school quickly that morning.How often: He usually walks to school.

ADVERBS (Types of words)

Lots of adverbs end in -ly:

beautifully, humbly

Many adverbs are phrases:

in the evening, into the house, all morning

ADVERBS (Types of words)

Some adverbs can be in more than one place.

1. He walked quickly to the door and opened it. Quickly, he walked to the door and opened it.

2. She usually studies in the morning. Usually she studies in the morning. In the morning, she usually studies.

CONJUNCTIONS Conjunctions are words like:

because, if, although, since and, but, so, or

Conjunctions put two clauses (ideas) together.

I am tired because I studied all night. I will help you if I have time.

What is a clause? A clause is group of words that has a subject

and a verb and expresses an idea.Examples:

S V

Smart students study hard. (1 clause)

S V S V

Students study hard if they are smart. (2 clauses)

Examples of types of words

The old woman dances beautifully.

What types of words are in this clause?

Olympic athletes are usually in good physical condition.

Adj. N V Adv.

Examples of types of words

Adj. N V AdvOlympic athletes are usually

Prep Adj Adj N in good physical condition.

2. The basic word order in an English clause is

S V (Comp)* (Adverbs)*

The S(ubject) is our topic (what we are talking/writing about). It is a noun.

The V(erb) begins our comment about that topic. Of course, it is a verb!

* The ( ) means optional

S V (Comp)* (Adverbs)*

(Comp) stands for complements or completers. Different verbs require different completers. Some verbs don’t need a completer.

(Adverbs), you will remember, answer the questions how, where, when, how often.

OJO: This order is quite rigid in English, but there is some flexibility in the position of adverbs.

S V (Comp)* (Adverbs)*

Examples: Basic Statement Word Order

S V (Comp) (Advs)1. The young man bought a car yesterday.2. My baby is sick today.3. The old lady fell down at home.

Organize these words into good English sentences. (Put adverbs in the basic position.)

1. easily, most, passed, test, the,students

2. are, some of, dancers, good, friends, my,

really

3. engineering, lots of, are, in Mayaguez

students, studying

Answers

S V Comp Adv1. Most students passed the test easily. S V Comp2. Some of my friends are really good dancers. S V Comp3. Lots of students are studying engineering in Mayaguez.

3. A subject is obligatory for verbs with tense (Present, Past, Future) There is always a word (usually a noun or

pronoun) in the S position.

Examples: The weather isn’t good today.

It is raining.

There are black clouds in the sky.

Obligatory Subjects (Cont’d)

Longer sentences with two or more clauses (S/V pairs) have a noun or pronoun in the S position in every clause.

S Conj SI bought a new car because my old car was

using too much gas.S SI like my new car because it is comfortable.

Spot the errorsWhat is wrong with these sentences?

1. My sister passed easily her driver’s test.

2. Is raining.

3. Are many students in Mayaguez.

4. My parents need protection so have two dogs.

Answers

S V Comp Adv

1. My sister passed her driver’s test easily.

S V

2. It is raining.

S V

3. There are many students in Mayaguez.

S V Comp Conj S V Comp

4. My parents need protection so they have two dogs.

Application:

When you read, look for the Subject (the topic) and Complement (or Predicate) in each clause.

4. The basic word order in most questions is:

Q-word Be/Aux S MV Complementsand adverbs

What do you do?What are you studying?What kind ofmusic

do you like?

Where were you born?Where did you buy your books?What sports can you play?Why should we study?

Organize these words into good English questions.

Remember the word order is usually

Q-word Be/Aux S MV (main verb) (Comp & Advs)

1. you, how often, at the library, study, do

2. study, sister, where, your, does

3. studying, are, you, what

4. last weekend, do, did, you, what

Answers:

Q-word Aux/Be S MV Adv

1. How often do you study at the library? Q-word Aux/Be S MV

2. Where does your sister study? Q-word Aux/Be S MV

3. What are you studying? Q-word Aux/Be S MV Adv

4. What did you do last weekend?

Spot the errorsWhat is wrong with these questions?

1. Where you are going?

2. Why you want to be an accountant?

3. Where did you learned English?

4. Why there is poverty in the world?

Answers

1. Where are you going?

2. Why do you want to be an accountant?3. Where did you learn English? (no past -ed

with did)

4. Why is there poverty in the world?

5. Phrasal Verbs (PVs)

English has verbs that consist of more than one word; we call them phrasal verbs. PVs consist of a usual verb and a particle or two. The particles are prepositions and adverbs which change the meaning of the main verb.

Phrasal Verbs (Cont’d)

Example 1:Plants grow. (get bigger)(Las matas crecen.)

Children grow and they grow up.(get bigger and mature)(Los niños crecen y maduran.)

Phrasal Verbs (Cont’d)

Example 2:

My parents are going to take a vacation. (tomar)

I am going to take care of my little brother and sister. (cuidar)

Phrasal Verbs (Cont’d)

Example 3:You can pick any car you want. (choose,

select, escojer)

Please pick up the garbage on the floor.(remove it and throw it away, recojerlo y botarlo, )

Where are the PVs in these sentences?

1. Please turn off the lights so we can

show the movie.

2. I’m behind in my work. I have to catch up.

3. The kids ate up all the ice cream.

4. The teacher looked over the students’ work and made suggestions.

6. Adjectives

We use adjectives in two positions in English, before nouns and after certain verbs which we call linking verbs. The adjectives after linking verbs describe the subject (S) of the sentence. Notice that adjectives in English never have a plural form.

Adjectives (Cont’d)

After linking verbs Before nouns

You are lucky. You are a lucky person.

That movie was boring. It was a boring movie. I fell asleep.

That tree is beautiful. Those are beautiful trees.

Spot the errors in these sentences.

1. The meeting was in a room big.

2. I love the colorfuls flowers.