Grammar

  • Grammar,  Questions from Students

    Conjunctions!

    Normally, when we talk about conjunctions, we learn the seven coordinating conjunctions: and, or, nor, for, so, but, and yet. However, there are different types of conjunctions. (Yes, even an English teacher can make this mistake! ha!) Another type of conjunction is the subordinating conjunction. Unfortunately, there are a lot more than seven of these! You can find a list here: https://www.grammarly.com/blog/subordinating-conjunctions/. The third type of conjunction is the correlating conjunction. Here is a quick list: either… or neither… nor not only… but also both… and whether… or so… as If you’d like to brush up on conjunctions, you can visit http://partofspeech.org/conjunction/.    

  • Grammar,  Questions from Students

    What is an Adverb?

    I received this question from a student this week: “She is a very smart girl. Very is a/an _____________. The correct answer: adverb. I said: adjective. Would you please explain this to me? I thought that all adverbs ended in -ly?” Here is my response: Many adverbs end in -ly; however, not all of them do. Sometimes words that end in ly are not adverbs at all. The function of an adverb is to modify a verb, adjective, or another adverb. An adverb answers the questions how? when? where? why? So, in this sentence, “very” answers the question “How smart?” Therefore, it is modifying the word “smart,” which is an…