March 4th marks National Grammar Day in the United States and to celebrate we're compiling some of our grammar articles from over the years. What exactly is grammar? When we talk about grammar, we are referring to the whole system and structure of a language, the way words are put together to form sentences. Learn more about the history of grammar here. Grammar is often confused with punctuation which is the written marks used to separate sentences in order to clarify meaning. Click here for Spellzone's guide to punctuation. Here are some of our top grammar articles: Clauses A clause is a group of words containing a verb that can either stand alone as a complete...
Often, in our Commonly Confused Words and Word for Wednesday blog posts, we use word classes to describe the way a word functions within a sentence. Over the next couple of weeks, we’re going back to the drawing board. What are the main word classes? What are their functions? There are nine main word classes: adjective, adverb, conjunction, determiner, exclamation, noun, pronoun, preposition, and verb. While this list might look daunting, it is very likely that you are already using words within each of these classes instinctively and correctly. Knowing the names of the word classes is useful for describing what a word is doing in a sentence and for helping you tell apart commonly c...
“Would you like to go to the zoo with Jane and me?” Somewhere along the way, many of us have got it into our heads that we should always be saying and I, and that saying and me is wrong.This is perhaps because many of us, at one time or another, have been corrected for using me in the wrong context without being taught the appropriate way to use each pronoun. I should be used when the pronoun is the subject of a verb. If the sentence makes sense with the word we, you should write Jane and I. If it doesn’t make sense, you should write Jane and me. Me should be used when the pronoun is the object of a verb. If the sentence make sense with the word us, you sh...
Depending on your accent, you might find yourself confused between two of these words, or all three of them. What does each word mean? The word are is the present tense second person singular (as in ‘you are’) and the present tense first, second, and third person plural (as in ‘we are’, ’you are’, ‘they are’) of the verb ‘to be’. Here is are used in some example sentences: You are very good at spelling. We are very good at spelling. You are both very good at spelling. They are very good at spelling. TOP TIP: remember that ‘you are’ can also be shortened to ‘you’re’. The word...
What does each word mean? To is a preposition. This means it shows the relation between the noun or pronoun and another part of the sentence. Some examples of pronouns are: at, after, between, on, through, and until. Click here to see the Oxford English Dictionary’s full definition of the word. Here is to used in some example sentences (the italics highlight the noun or pronoun): This afternoon I’m going to the hairdressers. The baked beans are kept in the cupboard to the left of the fridge. To her surprise, the film left her close to tears. My uncle, who is married to my aunt, is not a blood relative. The word too is used to express that either something i...
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"I ran the trial with a small group of students over three weeks before the summer holidays," she says. "I quickly saw the benefits, and signed up."
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