作文语法注意事项 zz

imongUID：140258

作文语法注意事项
www.ansipen.com/zuowen/grammar.html
人家总结得很不错，有些问题的确是在大家的作文里recurrent严重，学习一下。

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1.主谓必须一致

The verb and subject must agree. If the subject is singular, the verb must be singular. If the subject is plural, the verb must be plural. Test writers will try to fool you by using writing unusual phrases that make it difficult to tell if the subject is singular or plural.

1) If a singular subject is separated by a comma from an accompanying phrase, it remains singular:

The child, together with his grandmother and his parents, is going to the beach.

wrong: Frank, accompanied by his student, were at the studio.
right: Frank, accompanied by his student, was at the studio.

wrong: His mastery of several sports and the social graces make him a sought-after prom date.
right: His mastery of several sports and the social graces makes him a sought-after prom date.

His is singular and makes is singular.

2) Collective nouns, such as family, majority, audience, and committee are singular when they act in a collective fashion or represent one group. They are plural when they act as individuals. Collective nouns will usually be singular in Sentence Correction sentences.

A majority of the shareholders wants the merger.

Here the "majority" acts as a singular, and therefore has a singular verb: "wants."

The jury were in disagreement.

Collective noun, plural verb (because they are acting as individuals). Note: this is very rare and highly unlikely to come up on test day.

3) Phrases separated by and are plural, phrases separated by or are singular. Neither/nor and either/or are also singular.

Ted, John, and I are going.

Because they are seperated by and the plural form is used

4) Be careful you choose the right subject in sentences in which the verb precedes the subject.

wrong: There is many reasons why I can't help you.
right: There are many reasons why I can't help you.

Here reasons is the subject.

tricks: beware of confusing singular/plural words:Singular Plural Medium Media Datum Data

2.修饰词必须正确

1). Errors in the Use of Adjectives and Adverbs.

Check if a word modifier is an ADJECTIVE or an ADVERB. Make sure the correct form has been used.

An ADJECTIVE describes a noun and answers the questions: how many, which one, what kind? She is a good tennis player. (What kind of tennis player?)

An ADVERB describes either a verb or an adjective and answers the questions: when, where, why, in what manner, and to what extent?

She plays tennis well. (She plays tennis how?) This exercise is relatively easy. (How easy?) Most adverbs are formed by adding -ly to the adjective, such as he worked quickly.

EXCEPTIONS:

Adjective Adverb
early
fast
good
hard
late
early
fast
well
hard (hardly means almost not)
late (lately means recently)

wrong: She is a real good swimmer.
right: She is a really good swimmer.

"really" is acting as an adverb to modify the adjective "good"


wrong: The new student speaks bad.
right: The new student speaks badly.

"Badly" modifies how the student speaks.

2). Errors of Adjectives with Verbs of Sense.
The following verbs of sense are described by ADJECTIVES:

be
look
smell
taste
feel
seem

wrong: After the three-week vacation, she looked very well.
right: After the three-week vacation, she looked very good.

NOTE: "She is well" is also correct in the meaning of "She is healthy" or in describing a person's well-being.

wrong: The strawberry shortcake tastes deliciously.
right: The strawberry shortcake tastes delicious.

3). Location of Modification

A modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that describes another part of the sentence.
You should place a modifier as close as possible to what it is modifying.
Modifiers sometimes appear to modify words that they don't actually modify.

Test writers often utilize tricks to confuse students with modification:
That/which clauses, especially ones that come at the end of sentences
Sentences beginning or ending with descriptive phrases

Examples:
Faulty modifications often inadvertently change the meaning of sentences.

On arriving at the train station, his friends met him and took him immediately to his speaking engagement in Springfield.

This sounds as if the friends arrived at the train station. It should say... "When Jay arrived at the train station, his friends met him…

Where did the Jay come from? Sometimes one of the answer choices might inject new names into a sentence. This is appropriate here since the pronouns had no specific nouns they referred to.

Tricks: note that its is a possessive of it, and it's is the contraction of it and is.

3.代词必须准确

It is often difficult to tell what noun a pronoun replaces and what case (subjective or objective) should be used.

Which pronoun you use depends on if the pronoun is being used as the subject or the object of a sentence.

Subject Objective
he him
she her
who whom
I me
they them
we us

A. Pronoun Subject-Object.
Check if a pronoun is the SUBJECT or the OBJECT of a verb or preposition.

wrong: How could she blame you and he for the accident?
right: How could she blame you and him for the accident?

Example
(She/her) was better suited.

Here the pronoun is the subject of the verb suited, meaning, "she" acts as the subject.

WHO/WHOM
If the pronoun is acting as a subject, it should be who. If it is acting as an object, it should be whom.

Example
I don't know (who/whom) Steven meant.

Whom is in the object form because it is the object of meant (with Steve as the subject).

B. Check if the pronoun and its verb agree in number.
Remember that the following are singular:

anyone anything each
either everyone everything
neither no one nothing
what whatever whoever

These are plural:
both many several others few

① wrong: Everyone on the project have to come to the meeting.
right: Everyone on the project has to come to the meeting.

The forms "either... or" and "neither.. .nor" are singular and take a singular verb. However, if the noun closest to the verb in the "neither..nor or either...or" is plural, then the verb is plural.

②wrong: Neither his bodyguards nor he was there.
right: Neither he nor his bodyguards were there.

C. Check if possessive pronouns agree in person and number.

① wrong: Some of you will have to bring their own beer.
right: Some of you will have to bring your own beer.

Some is singular.

② wrong: If anyone comes over, take their name.
right: If anyone comes over, take his name.

The subject is anyone, which is singular, which requires a singular pronoun (his).

D. "Objects" of to be verbs are in the subject form.

wrong: It must have been her who called.
right: It must have been she who called.

E. A relative pronoun (which, that or who) refers to the word preceding it. If the meaning is unclear, the pronoun is in the wrong position. The word which introduces non-essential clauses, that introduces essential clauses. Who refers to individuals, that refers to a group of persons, class, type, or species.

wrong: The line at the bank was very slow, which made me late.
right: I was late because of the line at the bank. OR The line at the bank made me late.

F. In forms using impersonal pronouns, use either "one.. one's/his or her" or "you.. your."

① wrong: One should have their teeth checked every six months.
right: One should have one's/his or her teeth checked six months.
OR: You should have your teeth checked every six months.

② wrong: One should take your responsibilities seriously.
right: One should take one's/his or her responsibilities seriously.
OR: You should take your responsibilities seriously.

4.平行句必须对称

Similar elements in a list should be in similar form.

Matching constructions must be expressed in parallel form. It is often rhetorically effective to use a particular construction several times in succession, in order to provide emphasis. Here is an example.

As a naturalist, Teddy Roosevelt made many exploration discoveries, as a military leader he helped to inspire victory in Cuba, and as a statesman he established America as a superpower.

Writers often use a parallel structure for dissimilar items.

wrong: They are sturdy, attractive, and cost only a dollar each. (The adjectives sturdy and attractive, but cannot be understood before cost only a dollar each.)
right: They are sturdy and attractive, and they cost only a dollar each.

Parallel constructions must be expressed in parallel grammatical form: all nouns, all infinitives, all gerunds, all prepositional phrases, or all clauses must agree.

wrong: All business students should learn word processing, accounting, and how to program computers.
right: All business students should learn word processing, accounting, and computer programming.

This principle applies to any words that might begin each item in a series: prepositions (in, on, by, with), articles (the, a, an), helping verbs (had, has, would) and possessives (his, her, our). Either repeat the word before every element in a series or include it only before the first item. Anything else violates the rules of parallelism.

In effect, your treatment of the second element of the series determines the form of all subsequent elements:

wrong: He invested his money in stocks, in real estate, and a home for retired performers.
right: He invested his money in stocks, in real estate, and in a home for retired performers.

When proofreading, check that each item in the series agrees with the word or phrase that begins the series. In the above example, invested his money is the common phrase that each item shares. You would read, "He invested his money in real estate, (invested his money) in stocks, and (invested his money) in a home for retired performers."

5.人称必须统一

Since you are asked to write an explanatory essay, however, an occasional self-reference may be appropriate. You may even call yourself "I" if you want, as long as you keep the number of first-person pronouns to a minimum. Less egocentric ways of referring to the narrator include "we" and "one." If these more formal ways of writing seem stilted, stay with "I."

In my lifetime, I have seen many challenges to the principle of free speech.

We can see...

One must admit...
The method of self-reference you select is called the narrative voice of your essay. Any of the above narrative voices are acceptable. Nevertheless, whichever you choose, you must be careful not to shift narrative voice in your essay. If you use "I" in the first sentence, for example, do not use "we" in a later sentence.

INCORRECT: In my lifetime, I have seen many challenges to the principle of free speech. We can see how a free society can get too complacent when free speech is taken for granted.

It is likewise wrong to shift from "you" to "one"

INCORRECT: Just by following the news, you can readily see how politicians have a vested interest in pleasing powerful interest groups. But one should not generalize about this tendency.

6.句子必须完整、清楚

Beware of two common errors:

Sentence fragment: a statement with no independent clause
Run-on sentence: two or more independent clauses that are improperly connected

Sentence Fragments

Every sentence in formal writing must have an independent clause: a clause that expresses a complete thought and can stand alone. Dependent clauses do not express a complete thought and cannot stand alone. Errors are made when dependent clauses are used. Independent clauses contain a subject and a predicate and do not begin with a subordinate conjunction such as:

after as while
if provided that before
so that though where
whenever whether than
although because unless
in order since that

NOTE: Beginning single-clause sentences with coordinate conjunctions-and, but, or, nor, for-is acceptable in moderation, although some readers may object to beginning a sentence with and.

INCORRECT: Global warming. That is what the scientists and journalists are worried about this month.
CORRECT: Global warming is the cause of concern for scientists and journalists this month.

INCORRECT: Seattle is a wonderful place to live. Having mountains, ocean, and forests all within easy driving distance. If you can ignore the rain.
CORRECT: Seattle is a wonderful place to live, with mountains, ocean, and forests all within easy driving distance. However, it certainly does rain often.

INCORRECT: Why do I think the author's position is preposterous? Because he makes generalizations that I know are untrue.
CORRECT: I think the author's position is preposterous because he makes generalizations that I know are untrue.

NOTE: Beginning single-clause sentences with coordinate conjunctions-and, but, or, nor, and for-is acceptable in moderation, although some readers may object to beginning a sentence with and. CORRECT: Most people would agree that indigent patients should receive wonderful health care. But every treatment has its price.

Run-On Sentences
Time pressure may also cause you to write two or more sentences as one. When you proofread your essays, watch out for independent clauses that are not joined with any punctuation at all or are only joined with a comma.

RUN-ON SENTENCE: Current insurance practices are unfair they discriminate against the people who need insurance most.

You can repair run-on sentences in two ways. First, you could use a period to make separate sentences of the independent clauses. The second method of repairing a run-on sentence is usually the most effective. Use a conjunction to turn an independent clause into a dependent one and to make explicit how the clauses are related.

CORRECT: Current insurance practices are unfair, in that they discriminate against the people who need insurance most.

One cause of run-on sentences is the misuse of adverbs like however, nevertheless, furthermore, likewise, and therefore.

RUN-ON SENTENCE: Current insurance practices are discriminatory, furthermore they make insurance too expensive for the poor.

CORRECT: Current insurance practices are discriminatory. Furthermore, they make insurance too expensive for the poor.

7.逗号必须使用恰当

The comma is the most abused punctuation mark, possibly because writers are sometimes so worried about following rules that they forget to pay attention to the way the words sound when spoken. Commas help a reader understand the rhythm of the sentence. If you are having comma problems, try saying your sentence out loud, and listening for natural pauses. The function of a comma is to slow the reader down briefly and make the reader pause. The omission of a comma can allow phrases and clauses to crash into one another, thereby confusing the reader. Commas can influence the meaning of your sentence. Consider the following:

The food tastes terrible, however the cook fixes it.

The food tastes terrible, however, the cook fixes it. In the first sentence, the food tastes terrible no matter how the cook fixes it. In the second sentence, the cook improves the taste of the food. Again, the comma controls the meaning.

RULES FOR COMMAS

1). Use a comma to separate two independent clauses connected by and, but, or, nor, for.

Bob was usually a quiet man, but he screamed upon entering the room.

The strange man lying under the table appeared to be dead, or just possibly he was only napping.

If the independent clauses are short, you may omit the comma.

The man was still and his foot was bleeding.

His hat was on but his pants were off.

2). Use a comma to separate elements in a list or series. Don't omit the final comma.

Bob tried to breathe, to keep from fainting, and to remember his first aid.

Next to the man was a bassoon, a water balloon, and a raccoon.

3). Use a comma to separate introductory phrases and clauses from the independent clause, particularly if the phrase or clause is long.

After catching his breath, Bob squatted next to the man and took his pulse.

When he felt nothing, Bob picked up the bassoon and blew.

Although he had never played a bassoon before, he somehow managed to make beaufiful music.

Again, if the introductory phrase is short, you may omit the comma:

When he stopped playing it was dark outside.

4). If the introductory phrase is a gerund, participial, or infinitive phrase, use a comma even if the phrase is short. Otherwise the reader may be confused: When Bob began to eat, rats ran across the carpet. Not: When Bob began to eat rats ran across the carpet.

5. In a series of adjectives, use a comma if the adjectives could also be separated by and.

The nimble, fat, and furry raccoon began to poke at the water balloon. (Could write as: The nimble and fat and furry raccoon . .

If the and doesn't fit, leave out the comma:

The man's white cotton shirt was balled up in a corner. (Wouldn't write as:The man's white and cotton shirt . .)

If this rule seems confusing, try reading the sentence aloud. If you make a slight pause between adjectives, put in commas. Otherwise, leave them out. Another test: if you can change the order of the adjectives, put in commas.- For example:

The handsome, brilliant scholar
Or: The brilliant, handsome scholar

The frilly party dress
Not: The party frilly dress

6). Use commas to set off clauses but do not use commas for restrictive clauses. (Quick review: and essential or restrictive clause is one that can't be left out of a sentence. Clauses that don't define can be lifted from the sentence without changing the meaning.)

Bananas that are green taste tart.
(That are green defines which bananas we mean)
Bananas, which grow in the tropics, do not need refrigeration.
(Which grow in the tropics refers to all bananas. The clause can be lifted from the sentence without changing the meaning.)

Let's look at a sentence that you could punctuate either way, depending on the meaning:

The men who were tired and hungry began eating sardines.
(who were tired and hungry is a defining clause, telling us which men we mean) The men, who were tired and hungry, began eating sardines. (Who were tired and hungry describes all of the men and doesn't differentiate these men from other men who weren't tired and hungry.)

7). Words or phrases that interrupt the sentence should be set off by commas.

Now then, let's get down to work.

"Save me," he said, before falling down the stairs.

On the other hand, error can lead to revelation.

What the candidate promised, in fact, is impossible to achieve.

Hello, I must be going.

8). Use commas to set off an appositive. An appositive is a noun or pronoun that explains or identifies the noun that precedes it.

Mrs. Dingdong, my favorite teacher, is wearing a wig.

Ralphie, the president of the student council, is on probation.

Remember that commas are one way to make your writing clear. Reading your sentences aloud is a very good way to find the natural place for commas, as is inspecting your sentences for ambiguity or confusion.

so猫UID：148633

我是新来的~
谢谢楼主~~~