At a loss for words?

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Grammar & Punctuation for Writers

Agreement of Subject & Verbs Make the subjectand verbagree witheach other and not with the words that come betweenthem. { } • One of the most famous Aggies isreviewing the march-in. • Of my friends, several have vowed never to leave Aggieland.

Subject & Verb Agreement Verb Subject Example Singular Two, sing.Harry orRon is arriving by floo subjects powder today. Singular Each Each of the professors knowshow to teach potions. Plural Either/orNeither the History of Magic Neither/norbook nor the wandsare sold at the Leaky Cauldron. Singular Sums ofOne hundred galleons is too money much for a baby dragon.

Agreement of Nouns & Pronouns • Make the nouns and the pronouns that refer to it agree. { } • EveryAggie has promised to uphold his or her part of the bargain. • All Aggieshave promised to uphold theirpart of the bargain.

Noun & Pronoun Agreement Noun Pronoun Example Singular SingularEveryone is bringing hisorherwand to class. Singular SingularEach of the professors knows his orhermost adept fliers. Singular SingularTheclass hasits own dragon. Plural Plural Theclass hastheir own dragon.

Dangling Modifiers An introductory modifier should always refer to the subject of the sentence. { • After carrying the mini-fridge up the dorm stairs, it wouldn’t fit in the doorway to the room. • After carrying the mini-fridge up the dorm stairs, the Fish found that it wouldn’t fit in the doorway to the room.

Parallelism • In a series, always use the same type of grammatical structure for elements throughout the list. Make them parallel. { Welearned Aggie yells, the“Aggie War Hymn,” talkedabout the traditions, and madenew friends. We had fun learningthe Aggie yells, singingthe “Aggie War Hymn,” talkingabout the traditions, and makingnew friends.

Active Voice • If the subject of the sentence performs theaction, the verb is in activevoice. • The Aggie men’s basketball team beat Colorado’s basketball team this week. • *When the actor is more important than the action, use active voice. { }

Passive Voice • If the subject of the sentence receivesthe action, the verb is in passivevoice. • The tu women’s basketball team was beaten by the Aggies this week. • *When the actor is unknown or unimportant or you want to hide the actor, use passive voice. { }

Punctuation • Check for . . . • Commas • Semicolons • Colons • Apostrophes

Understanding Clauses Independent clause • Can stand on its own as a sentence • Receives the most emphasis Dependentclause • Is a sentence fragment • Adds extra information { } • Because Aggies believe in honesty and loyalty,they do not lie, cheat or steal.

Dependent Clause Indicators A clause will be dependent if it starts with words like because, if, when, while, since, that, which, who, as, or a preposition. { } Since I go to Texas A&M, I follow the Aggie Honor Code. *Prepositions are anything an Aggie can do at Kyle Field.

Comma Splice Error Joining complete sentences (independent clauses) with a comma { } Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal, they believe in honesty and loyalty. Aggies believe in honesty and loyalty, therefore, theydo not lie, cheat or steal.

Run-on Error • Joining complete sentences (independent clauses) with no punctuation { } • Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal they believe in honesty and loyalty. • Aggies believe in honesty and loyalty therefore, they do not lie, cheat or steal.

To Correct These Errors... • Comma + coordinating conjunction {,} • Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal, for they believe in honesty and loyalty. • Aggies believe in honesty and loyalty, so they do not lie, cheat or steal. • *What’s a coordinating conjunction? • [for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so—FANBOYS]

To Correct These Errors... 2. Period {.} • Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal. They believe in honesty and loyalty. • Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal. For they believe in honesty and loyalty.

To Correct These Errors... 3. Semicolon {;} • Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal;they believe in honesty and loyalty. • Aggies believe in honesty and loyalty; • therefore, they do not lie, cheat or steal.

Transitions with Semicolons • Words like however, therefore, in addition, nevertheless, whereas,and thuscan be used with semicolons to make transitions. {;} • Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal; however,nobody’s perfect. • Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal; thus,they have an Honor Code.

Semicolons & Colons Semicolons Separate two complete sentences (second sentence NOT capitalized) Used in lists where there are two commas within the items of the list {;} Colons • Set apart a complete sentence from an example or list • He checked out three books: Jurassic Park, Timeline, and Airframe. {:}

Use Coordination for Balance Coordinate sentences to have balanced parts that are given equal emphasis. • Two sentences joined by a semi-colon • Two sentences joined by a comma plus a coordinate conjunction (FANBOYS) { } Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal; they believe in honesty and loyalty.

Subordinate Ideas with Commas • The emphasis goes to the complete sentence or independent clause. {,} • BecauseAggies believe in honesty and loyalty, they do not lie, cheat or steal. • Becausethey do not lie, cheat or steal, Aggies believe in honesty and loyalty.

Commas & Who, Which, That • If the phrase or clause is essential to the sentence’s meaning, do not use commas. • The Aggie wearing the Maroon Out shirtis my brother. • The Aggie who is wearing the Maroon Out shirt is my brother. {,}

Commas & Who, Which, That • If the word, phrase, or clause is not • essential for your sentence to make the sense you want, use commas. {,} • The Aggie, wearing the Maroon Out shirt, is my brother. • The Aggie, who is wearing the Maroon Out shirt, is my brother.

Commas & Introductory Elements • When using an introductory word, phrase, or dependent clause to begin a sentence, use a comma. {,} • During the last thirteen football seasons, I have seen every Aggie home game. • However, I have seen every Aggie home game.

UWC JeopardyGrammar and Punctuation End Bank

The court rules for 100 Two complete sentences (punctuated as one) with no punctuation between them. 

The court rules for 200 Two or more complete sentences not started with “and, or, for, but, yet, so” and joined with a comma. 

The court rules for 300 One subject, one verb (predicate), and it stands alone.  Daily Double!

The court rules for 400 “Between you and I” 

The court rules for 500 One independent clause + one dependent clause. 

Name that blooper! for 100 Marie Antoinette said, “Let them eat cake”! 

Name that blooper! for 200 Warm and plump, Mary Beth inhaled the long-awaited hot dog. 

Name that blooper! for 300 My parents bought a house from a man with no inside plumbing. 

Name that blooper! for 400 Either are correct. 

Name that blooper! for 500 The perfect Martini uses equal parts dry and sweet Vermouth, having no more than one ounce of water or ice, and is always made with gin instead of vodka. 

Pause that refreshes for 100 The punctuation mark used to separate items in a series. 

Pause that refreshes for 200 The punctuation mark that separates two complete sentences and that is not a period, dash, or colon. 

Pause that refreshes for 300 It can be used to introduce a long list. 

Pause that refreshes for 400 One of three ways to fix a run-on sentence. 

Pause that refreshes for 500 A punctuation mark that is often substituted for the colon or comma and is considered less formal. 

The pen is mightier for 100 Sometimes you have to make exceptions. No kidding. 

The pen is mightier for 200 The policemen, firemen, and mailmen had gathered to honor fallen heroes. 

The pen is mightier for 300 Who did you call last night? 

The pen is mightier for 400 It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness. 

The pen is mightier for 500 To boldly go where no one has gone before.  Daily Double!

Potpourri for 100 Michael Crichton combines scientifical information with enthralling literature in his books. 

Potpourri for 200 Simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex  Daily Double!

Potpourri for 300 In spite of its name, it won’t catch spelling errors like “there” for “their.” 

Potpourri for 400 Is Bob dead, did something break? 

At a loss for words?