TUMAINI UNIVERSITY DAR ES SALAAM COLLEGE

DEPARTMENT OF LINGUISTICS

LANG. 102: COMMUNIUCARION SKILLS

Module 1: Vocabulary

The term vocabulary refers to all the words known and used by a particular person. Speaking of
the vocabulary is the same as speaking of words. Word on the other hand refers to a single unit
of language which has meaning and can be spoken and/or written. Any human language is made
up by a combination of different words to convey a fully idea, thought or feeling which are used
by its people for different purposes in their respective societies.

Synonyms and antonyms

Words in many languages relate in different ways including sharing similar meaning or having
different meanings. The mentioned relationships take us to a discussion of synonyms and
antonyms

Synonyms

The relationship of sameness in meaning. They are the words that differ in pronunciation and
writing system, but have similar meaning.

For example: Tall and long

Finish and complete
Begin and commence
Comprise and include
There are two types of synonyms:

a. Total synonyms

These are words with similar meaning in that they can be substituted within the sentence.

For example: Hide - conceal

Happy - glad

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 Begin - commence
Broad - wide
b. Partial or near synonyms
These are words with similar meanings which are not full synonyms because they cannot be
substitutes each other within the sentence.

For example: Liberty – freedom

Tall - long
Little - few
Deep – profound
Exercise

Look for different synonymous words from your field and then identify whether they are total or
near synonyms

Antonyms

Refers to the relationship of opposite in meaning or incompatibility. There are various ways in
which words can be incompatible. Generally speaking, antonym are divided into two major
classes which are gradable and non-gradable antonyms

i. Gradable Antonyms

They have degree among them, i.e between two opposite words we have intermediate
category

For example: Hot- warm-cool-cold

Big- medium-small
Old – youth- young
Most adjectives are gradable antonyms because they take different degrees among them, such
as comparative and superlative.

For example: Tall – taller- tallest

Expensive – more expensive – most expensive

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 ii. Non-gradable Antonyms
They have no degree between them, i.e comparative and superlative degrees cannot occur in
non-gradable antonym.

For example:
Asleep - awake Right - left
Dead - alive In - out
Present - absent Enter - exit
Truth - false Raise - lower
Verify - falsify. Dress - undress
Up - down
Exercise
Look for antonymous words from your field and then identify whether they are gradable or non-
gradable.

Word Formation

This can be referred to as the processes used in forming new words in a language. A characteristic of
all human languages is the potential to create new words. New words are formed by adding a
morpheme to a root of a word. The English language is very rich in word formation processes, it has a
number of them responsible in forming new words. These processes in English language include:

i. Affixation

The term affixation can be defined as a morphological process of attaching an affix to the root or base
of a word, whereas, affix is a morpheme attached to a root or base of a word.

For example: Un + wise

Cheer + ful
Boy + s

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Types of affixes

There are number of type of affixes, but for the sake of our course we will discuss only two: prefix and
suffix

i. Prefix
A prefix is an affix which occurs before the root or base of a word
For example:
Un + do
Ir + regular Post + independency
Un + like
Pre + colonial
In + correct Ex + wife
Dis + connect Bi + labial
Un + do Tri + angle
Mal + nutrition Poly + gamy
Arch +angel Mono + lingual
Co + wife Semi + final
Fore + head Multi + purpose
Inter + college

Prefixes in English language, as well as other languages, save different purposes like, showing status
of people, number, time, reverse, degree, etc

ii. The Suffix

The suffix is an affix which occurs after the base or root of a word

For example: kiss +ed

Wonder +ful
Amaze + ing

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 Digest + ive etc
Generally, as we have seen, affixes play major two functions when attached to a root which are
marking grammatical aspect and changing or modifying the word class.

For example: The affixes for showing grammatical aspect

Play + ed = Past tense

Small + er = Comparative
Tall + est = Superlative
Wish + es = Plural
Smile + ing = Progressive
The Affixes for changing/modifying word class

Play (V) - Play + er (N) Slow (Adj) - Slow + ly (Adv)

Kind (Adj)- Kind + ness (N) Inform (V) - Inform + ant (N)
Judge (V) - Judge + ment (N) Enjoy (V) - Enjoy + able
(Adj)
Attract (V) - Attract + ive (Adj)
Beauty (N) - Beauty + fy (V)
Exercise
Look for different affixes from your field and then explain what they stand for

ii. Compounding

This is another word formation process in which two or more words are put together to act as a single
word with a distinct meaning. Compound words consist of two elements: the first of which is either a
root, a word or a phrase, the second of which is the head.

For example:
Girl + friend = girlfriend Black + board = blackboard
Boy + friend = boyfriend Finger + print = fingerprint
Black + bird = blackbird
White + house = white
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The vast majority of compounds in English are interpreted in such a way that the left-hand member (s)
somehow modifies the right-hand member.

Types of compounds

Compounds are of three types:

a. Closed compounds
They are formed when two or more words are joined together. They do not have a space in between.

For example: Doghouse = dog + house

Finger + print = fingerprint
White + house = whitehouse
Head + master = Headmaster
Play + boy = Playboy
b. Open compounds
They are two or more words joined together but nave a space in between them, though they are read as
a single word.

For example: Head + teacher = head teacher

Ice + scream =ice scream
Last + call = last call
First + aid = first aid

c. Hyphenated compounds
They are formed by being connected by a hyphen
For example: Neo + colonialism = neo – colonialism
Non + alignment = non-alignment
Non + alcoholic = non – alcoholic
Word + perfect = word- perfect

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 Red + hot = red-hot

iii. Clipping

Clipping, as a word formation process, is very productive; not only in the English language but also in
many African languages. It involves shortening a word or deleting a syllable or syllables from an
existing word.

For example: telephone = phone

Hamburger = burger
Laboratory = lab
Types of clipping

We can identify three types of clipping in the English language. These are back clipping, fore-
clipping, and complex clipping.

a. Fore clipping
In fore clipping, an element or elements are taken from the beginning of a word.
For example: hamburger = burger
Telephone = phone
Helicopter = copter

This type of clipping also occurs with personal names in the English language.
For example: Elizabeth = Beth
Anthony = Thony

b. Back clipping
In the case of back clipping, an element or elements are taken from the end of a word. In English for
instance, the following have undergone various back-clippings as can be seen from the following
Examples;

Chimpanzee = chim Hippopotamus = hippo

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 Laboratory = lab Fanatic = fan
Gasoline = gas Application = app
Professor = prof
The phenomenon can else well be applied to people’s names such as

Catherine = Cathy Benjamini = Benja

Benard = Beni Daniel = Dani
Benedicto = Bene Rugemalira -= Ruge
c. Complex clipping
We also have some words in English language which have been clipped on both sides, i.e at the
beginning and at the end, the mid part is the one remains. This type of clipping is known as complex
clipping. Consider the following example:

Influenza = flue
Refrigerator = fridge
Complex clipping is also attested to some people’s name such as

Masumbuko = Sumbu

iv. Blending

Blending is a word formation process of creating a new word by combining parts of two or more
already existing words in the same language.

For example:

Breakfast plus lunch = brunch Motor plus hotel = motel

Tanganyika plus Zanzibar = Tanzania Television plus broadcast = telecast
Smoke plus fog = smog

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v. Acronyms

It is a word formation process whereby a new word is formed by taking initial letters or syllables from
different words. Acronyms often consist of capital letters, as in:-

TUDARCO = Tumain University Dar es Salaam College

EAC = East Africa Community
UNO = United Nations Organization
AU = African Union
CHADEMA = Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo
TANAPA = Tanzania National Parks

Article

Refers to a word which is used with a noun which shows whether the noun refers to something definite or
something indefinite.

I saw a man
Jane bought the book
Our father is an engineer

Types of Articles

English language has two types of articles which are definite articles and indefinite articles

a. Definite Article – the

Refers to a particular thing or known thing
For example: We saw the thieves running
He took the book from me

Uses of definite article –the

i. Someone or something which is known

For example: The boy who came yesterday is my child
The story was very interesting
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ii. When a singular noun represents a whole class.
For example: The dog is my best animal
iii. A person or something which is already mentioned
For example: I saw a thief yesterday. The thief had carried TV
iv. Names of journals and newspapers
For example: The citizen news
The guardian news

v. Plural nouns
For example: The men were seen watching the football match
vi. Superlative
For example: Angel is the most beautiful girl
Juma us a tallest boy in the class
vii. Titles of people
For example: The chief justice
The secretary general
viii. Things which are unique or existing alone in the world
For example: The earth
The sky
ix. Adjectives that indicate a class of persons
For example: The rich should help
The poor
x. Abstract nouns when particularized
For example: The beauty of Marther makes men crazy
xi. When we refer to imaginary geographical lines
For example: The equator, the Tropic of Cancer, the Tropic of Capricorn; the
latitude; the longitude
xii. A country which is a union of more than one country
For example: The united republic of Tanzania
The united States of America
xiii. Rivers, Oceans, Seas, Groups of Mountains and Islands
For example: The Amazon, the Indian ocean, the lake Victoria

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 xiv. Ordinal numbers
For example: The first student, the second man
xv. Titles of schools
For example: The Tumaini University Dar es Salaam College
The University of Dar es Salaam
xvi. Directions
For example: The south, the east

b. Indefinite article – a and -an

Refers to nouns which are not specific (not clear known)
We want a teacher
She calls a police officer

Uses of indefinite articles –a and an

i. A is used with unknown noun starting with consonant sound

For example: A boy
ii. An is used with unknown noun starting with vowel sound
For example: An egg
iii. They are used with nationalities
For example: A Tanzanian
iv. They are used with names of jobs
For example: A teacher
v. Names of religions
For example: A Christian
vi. Temporary illnesses
For example: a headache, a cold, a fever, a backache
vii. With the names of days of the week when not referring to any particular day.
I was born on a Monday
viii. Referring to example of something
For example: Jane has a round shape

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 ix. With singular nouns after the words “what” and “such”
For example: What a beautiful woman!
x. A kind of person
For example: A polite man
xi. Awards
For example: A degree of law

When are we not allowed to use articles?

i. Mass nouns
For example: water was running
ii. Abstract noun
For example: education, happiness
iii. Proper nouns
For example: Juma, Aly, John
iv. Meals
For example: breakfast, lunch
v. Noun and number
For example: Room 7, page 2
vi. Routines place
For example: In bed, at home, at college
vii. Movement or transport
For example: On foot, by car, by bus
viii. Noun and preposition
For example: At home, on Tv
ix. Games and sports
For example: football, netball
x. Names of buildings
For example: Ubungo Plaza
xi. Days of the week
For example: Monday, Tuesday

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 xii. Cities, towns and streets
For example: Mwanza, Morogoro, Arusha, Tabora, Kariakoo
xiii. Countries and continents
For example: Tanzania, kenya, Uganda, Africa, Europe, Asia
xiv. Festivals
For example: Easter, Christmas
xv. Seasons and months
For example: Winter, summer, January, February,

Capitalization
It is a process of writing or printing by using capital letter or with an initial of capital letter.
When writing, we have different situations or circumstances which force us to use capital letter,
that means the use of capital letter becomes compulsory. Let us now see the rules which guide us
in capitalization.
1. The first word in a sentence
For example: It was a remarkable event which cannot be forgotten
2. Proper nouns (names for particular people, things and places)
For example: Juma Maendeleo
The mount Kilimanjaro
3. Names of organizations
For example: East Africa Community
4. Calendar names: Days of the week, months of the year, and holidays
For example: Monday, Tuesday, January, Nyerere Day etc
5. Geographical names
For example: Dar es Salaam City, Mwanza Region etc
6. Building names
For example: Ubongo Plaza
7. The first word of a quoted sentence
For example: she said, “Treat him as you would do to your son”
8. Group names: political parties, religious sects, nations and ethnic origin groups.

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 For example: Civil United Front, Chama Cha Mapinduzi, Christians, Muslims,
Tanzanians, Wachaga, etc
9. Government board and Department names
For example: the Senate, Department of Linguistics etc
10. Historic names: events and periods
For example: Tanganyika Independence, Reign of Mwl. Nyerere
11. Title: Titles before proper names, high government titles without names, and college
degree
For example: Secretary General, President of the United Republic of Tanzania, Bachelor
of Arts degree, etc
12. Titles of books, poems, articles, newspaper, plays, television shows and radio
programmes.
For example: Communication Skills, Eat More, the Guarduan, This Week Perspective,
and Power Breakfast

13. The compass only when they refer to specific regions

For example: We have had three relatives visit from the South

Punctuation

Punctuation is the process of organizing ideas in phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs or texts
by the help of punctuation marks. Punctuation marks are just symbols used in a text to denote
various meanings. They are the standardized marks inserted in written material to clarify
meaning and to separate structural units of words, phrases, clause and sentences ( Ebest, 2005)

The main purpose of punctuation marks is to give your writing a meaning by helping you to
present your ideas in clear and well demarcated sentences. Punctuation marks should not be used
indiscriminately. They should be used when necessary. The punctuation marks include:

1. Full stop or period (.)

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a. This is used to mark the end of a sentence. You should remember that a sentence is the
group of words that carries a subject doer of the action) and a predicate (receiver of the
action ), which make sense when stand alone. Hence, a full stop separates one sentence
from the other.

For example:

i. Kamugisha went to the library yesterday. He read many books on English language.
ii. I will visit you. You should wait me.
iii. We had a guest from Mwanza this morning

b. A full stop is also used to mark abbreviations and initials.

For example:
i. M.A = Master of Arts
ii. Mr. A.R Musa= Mr. Ali Rajabu Musa
iii. U.N = United Nations
c. In writing date
For example: 22.12.2020
d. When writing a website
For example: www.saut.ac.tz
e. In writing decimals
For example: 2.5

2. Comma (,)

It is used for:

a. Separating items in a list

For example:
i: He bought me a pen, pencil, book and rulers.
ii. He is tall, slim, black and handsome.

b. Separating a main clause if the clause is fairly long.

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 For example:
i. He came to see me last week, but i was not there

c. Separating a subordinate clause from the main one.

For example:
i. Though it was raining, I managed to attend the class
ii. Inspite of having may things to do, Salome cannot stop studying

d. Introducing a direct speech

For example: - Frank said, “I will study hard tonight.”
e. Separating a month and the year
For example: June, 1999

3. Colon (:)
a. We use the colon after a complete sentence to introduce a list of items when
introductory words such as namely, for example, or that is do not appear
For example:
i. You may be required to bring many items: sleeping bags, pans, and warm
clothing.
ii. I want the following items: butter, sugar, and flour.

b. We use the colon to introduce a direct or formal quotation

For example: John F. Kennedy ended the speech with these notable words: “Ask not
what your country can do for you. But ask what you can do for your country.”

c. We use a colon to emphasize a word, phrase, or clause that adds particular emphasis to the
main body of a sentence. Again, the part before the colon should already be a complete
sentence.

For example:
We were missing a vital piece of information: how the basic product design differed from
last year’s model

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 4. Semi Colon (;)

This is used to;

a. Separate two closely connected ideas to main clauses.

For example: The house badly needed painting; the garden was overgrown with needs.
Juma was very kind person; we liked him very much.
b. Precede statement containing certain expression like “that is and namely
For example: Both of the rules have now been enforced in the school; namely smoking
and drinking will not be allowed.
c. Separate items in a series if the items contain commas
For example: The dates we are considering for our annual party are Thursday, June 5;
Saturday, June 7; Sunday, June 8; or Monday, June 9.

5. The Hyphen (-)

It is used to;
a. Combine the words forming a compound word. examples;
i. Machine –gun
ii. Brother in-law
b. Join a capital letter to a word.
For example:
i. The U-joint went out in our second car.
ii. The architect worked with nothing more than aT-square.

c. Join fractions written as words.

For example: Three-fifths, five-sixteenths, five thirty-seconds

6. Dash (-)
We use dash for:
a. Indicating that the sentence was not completed by another speaker.
For example:
i. Ali said: “I will go out but-” I interrupted him saying that he should first wait.

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 ii. He said to her: “please help me or-” “not now”, she interrupted, because i am very
busy at the moment

b. Indicating omitted letters or words.

For example:
i. “Oh, da—, I can’t believe I forgot to mail that package!”
ii. “Hello!—Yes, I can hear you just fine.” —Of course—I think I can.

7. Question Mark (?)

The question mark is used in the following places;

a. At the end of direct question

For example:
i. What is your name?
ii. Have you submitted you assignment
b. At the end of requests
For example:
i. Will you allow me to ask a question please?
ii. May I see you for a moment please?
c. At the end of question tag

For example:

i. Is it?
ii. Aren’t you?

8. Exclamatory mark (!)

The punctuation mark is used for expressing strong feelings (emotion)
For example:
i. What a beautiful car!
ii. My God! The boy is in trouble again

9. Quotation Marks ( “………..” )

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The commonest uses of quotation marks are as follows;

a. Enclosing direct quotation( before and after words of direct speech )

For example: don’t forget to bring your pens”, the teacher said,” Since only writing paper
will be provided”.

b. To indicate that the words enclosed by the quotation marks are quotation.
For example: Politicians should never forget that “a week is a long time in politics”

c. For non English words, words from other language used because there is no
equivalent.
For example; yorubas wear ‘agbadas’ ; Sudanese wear ‘gellabias’

10. ELLIPSIS/ ellipsi points/ellipsis mark/ ellipsis suspension(…)

This is a series of three spaced periods/full stops(…) implying the process of deleting or
omitting a part of quoted material shortening or making them read smoothly in the new
context by leaving out unnecessary words, phrases, clauses or even longer portions.
( caution: always take care that the quoted author’s meaning is not distorted)

If the material at the end of a sentence is omitted, period is added to the three ellipsis
points.

For example: Thirty years ago, Newton Minow told television executives, “I invited you
to sit in front of your television set…and keep your eyes glued to the set until the
situation signs off….you will observe a vast wasteland.

Ellipsis points are not necessary at the beginning of quoted passage.

11. Apostrophes (‘)

This punctuation mark is for:

a. Showing possession

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 For example: John’s bag
b. Showing a letter has been omitted to make a contraction
For example: She isn’t in the class this time
12. Parentheses ( )

a. We use parentheses to enclose explanatory material that interrupts the normal flow of the
sentences and is only marginally related to the text
For example: We visited our friend (the one got accident last Monday) to the hospital

b. We use parentheses to enclose information when accuracy is essential.

For example: The two sons of Richard Hannika (Mathew and William) have been selected
for further studies

13. Brackets ( )
It is used for:
a. To enclose parenthetical material within parentheses
For example: Mohamed plans to work as a sociologist (he has recently graduated)
b. To enclose words inserted into quotation
For example: “the next teacher (Juma Ally) will be handling the course of
communication skills”

Spelling
Refers to the process of forming words with correct letters and correct structure. Spellings form
words which can be combined to make a complete idea.
The followwing are the strategies which we an use to improve our spellings
i. Use mnemonics
Is something such as a very short poem or a special word used to help a person remember
something? Remembering information can be difficult. But when you prepare an information,
it becomes easier to memorize. Mnemonic devices turn information into a picture, a sentence,
a rhyme or anything else that’s easier to remember.

ii. Learn a few rules

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 Try to find out the rules for that language. Start by learning few rules. Then, as you learn new
words, you can add more and more rules. Before you know it, you’ll be able to spell most
words.

You can find short lists of basic spelling rules from a dictionary. Don’t try to learn them all at
once! Instead, learn and practice one or two at a time until you understand them.

iii. Learn commonly misspelled words

Find out different words which have been misspelled. This will make you know the wrong
spellings thus avoiding to repeat the similar mistake. Some words are so tough to spell that
even native speakers get them wrong a lot. You can find them from different sources, like
from grammar books, watching videos of misspelled words.

iv. Make a list of the words you have trouble spelling

Write down words that you have trouble spelling, even if they seem simple. Then learn their
spelling rules or memorize them with mnemonics.

You might find that you have trouble with certain groups of words. For example: “percent,”
“preview,” “presentation”… when do you write “pre” and when is it “per”? Knowing what
you need to learn is an important part of learning.

v. Check in the dictionary

When you look up a word in the dictionary, you will get different information including
spellings. Other information may include: meaning, pronunciation, origin, word class etc.

vi. Chunk it

Sometimes words are difficult to spell just because they are long. In these cases, you can use
the chunking method. Chunking is when you separate the word into “chunks,” or shorter
parts. This way, you’re not memorizing the spelling for one long word, but just a few short
ones!

The word “embarrassed,” for example, can be chunked like this:

Em, bar, ras, ed or char, acter, ist, cs

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 Just remember the spelling for these four short “words,” and you’ll spell “embarrassed”
correctly every time.

vii. Sound it out

This is a spelling trick that is often taught to little kids, because it’s so simple. If you’re not
sure how to spell a word, say it out loud, very slowly. Then write down what you hear.

Of course, this won’t work with every word. The word “friend,” for example, doesn’t
sound the way it’s written. For words that don’t sound the way they’re spelled, you will
need to use a different method.

viii. Draw a picture

You can use drawing as another mnemonic device. Have you ever noticed that the word
“bed” actually looks like a bed? Using pictures is a great way to remember spellings.

Turn words that are difficult to spell into pictures. For example, “balloon” looks like it has
two balloons in the middle. Maybe they’re being held up by the double l next to them, which
is really two kids.

Draw any word you’re having trouble with, making the letters into a picture. The words will
stop being just letters, and turn into an image.

Homework

Find out different abbreviations used in your field

Tense and Aspects

Tense
In grammar tense refers to the time an action took place or the time of the state or condition.

Types of Tenses
English language has three tenses; the present, the past and the future tenses

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 i. The Simple Present Tense
This is used to indicate that something happens always, regularly, often, sometimes as a habit. It
is sometimes used with the following words: every day, every time every hour, every morning,
every afternoon, every year, etc.
For example:
Mary comes here every evening
Angel and Anna like to study business administration
It barks every time

Its Formula
He / she / It + Verb + s or es
I / you / we / they + Verb
How to Ask and Answer a question
We do start with auxiliary / helping verb Does if the sentence begins with singular subject, and
Do if it begins with plural subject.
For example:
Does Mary come here every day?
Yes, Mary comes here every day
No, Mary does not come here every day

Do they like to study business administration?

Yes, they like to study business administration
No, they do not like to study business administration

ii. The Present Continuous Tense

This is used when you wish to indicate that something is happening now, at the very moment of
speaking or writing. In other way, it is used to express an action that is still going on. It usually
Consists of two parts: an auxiliary verb (aux) and a main verb (mv). We sometimes use it with a
word “now”
For example:
The teacher is teaching

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Students are making noise now
I am talking to you

Its formula
He / she / it = + is + …ing
I = + am + …ing
We / you / they = + are + …ing

How to Ask and Answer a Question

When a sentence starts with a singular subject, we start with “Is + subject + verb”
When a sentence starts with pronoun I, We start with “Am + I + verb”
When a sentence starts with plural subject, we start with “Are + subject + verb”
For example:
Is the teacher teaching?
Yes, the teacher is teaching
No, the teacher is not teaching

Are students making noise now?

Yes, students are making noise now
No, students are not making noise now

Am I talking to you?
Yes, you are talking to me
No, you are not talking to me.

iii. The Simple Past Tense

This is used to indicate that an action which happened in the past is finished or completed. With
that we can use words like yesterday, last week, last morning, last year etc
For example:
I saw her yesterday

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She smiled so nice

Its formula
Subject + Past tense form of a verb

How to Ask and Answer a question

We start with “Did + subject + base form of the verb

For example:
Did I see her yesterday?
Yes, you saw her yesterday
No, you did not see her yesterday

Did she smile so nice?

Yes, she smiled so nice
No, she did not smile so nice

iv. The Past Continuous Tense

This is used to show that the action that occurred in the past was unfinished. This type of tense
consists both auxiliary verb and main verb.
For example:
She was reading a novel
They were chatting

Its formula
He / she / it / I = + was +…ing
We / you / they = + were + …ing

How to Ask and Answer a question

If a sentence starts with a singular subject, we begin with Was + subject + verb
If a sentence starts with a plural subject, we begin with Were + subject + verb

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For example:
Was she reading a novel?
Yes, she was reading a novel
No, she was not reading a novel

Were they chatting?

Yes, they were chatting
No, they were not chatting

v. The Simple Future Tense

This is used to indicate that something will happen sometime in the future. To express the future
tense, we use the auxiliary verbs ‘shall’ and ‘will’ with a main verb. ‘Shall’ is used after the
personal pronouns ‘I’ and ‘we’ while ‘will’ is used after the personal pronouns ‘he’, ‘she’, ‘they’,
“it”. This tense can be used with words such as “tomorrow, next day, next time, etc”.
Note : The personal pronouns ‘I’ and ‘we’ can also be followed by ‘will’ when the purpose of
the sentence is to express willingness, intention, a firm promise or a strong determination.
For example:
We shall see the teacher next time
You will visit them

Its formula
I / we = + shall + base form of verb
He / she /it/ you / they = + will + base form of the verb

How to Ask and Answer a question

When a sentence begins with I or we, we do start with “Shall + subject + base form of verb”
When a sentence begins with him / her / you and them, we start with “will + subject + base form
of verb”

For example:

26
Will you visit them?
Yes, I shall visit them
No, I shall not visit them

Shall we see the teacher next time?

Yes, we shall see the teacher next time
No, we shall not see the teacher next time

vi. The Future Continuous Tense

We use this to indicate the actions which will take place in the future, but it will be going on.
For example:
We shall be teaching them English
He will be sleeping in the class
Its formula
I / we = + shall + be + …ing
He / she / you / they = + will + be + …ing

How to Ask and Answer a question

If a sentence begins with I or We, we start with “shall + I or We + be + …ing”
If a sentence begins with He / she / you / they, we start with “will + subject + be + …ing”

For example:
Shall we be teaching them English?
Yes, we shall be teaching them English
No, we shall not be teaching them English

Will he be sleeping in the class?

Yes, he will be sleeping in the class
No, he will not be sleeping in the class

vii. The Future Perfect Tense

27
It is used to talk about actions that will be completed by a certain future time
For example:
We shall have come
He will have visited us

Its Formula
I / we / = + shall + have + Past participle form of a verb
He / she / it / you / they / = + will + have + Past participle form of a verb

How to Ask and Answer a question

When a sentence begins with I / we, we start with Shall + subject + have + Past participle form
of a verb
When a sentence begins with He / she / it / you / they, we start with Will + subject + have + Past
participle form of a verb

For example:
Will he have visited us?
Yes, he will have visited us
No, he will have not visited us

Shall we have come?

Yes, we shall have come
No, we shall have not come

Aspect
It refers to how an event or action is to be viewed with respect to time, rather than to its actual
location in time.

Types of Aspects
i. The Present Perfect

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It is used to indicate that an action is just finished. We use it to show that a past action has some
connection with the present.
For example:
We have finished to study
She has gone to Mombasa

Its Formula
He / she / it / = + has + Past participle form of a verb
I / you / we / they / + have + Past participle form of a verb

How to Ask and Answer a question

If a sentence starts with a singular subject, we begin with Has + subject + Past participle form of
a verb
If a sentence starts with a plural subject, we begin with Have + subject + Past participle form of
a verb

For example:
Have we finished to study?
Yes, we have finished to study
No, we have not finished to study

Has she gone to Mombasa?

Yes, she has gone to Mombasa
No, she has not gone to Mombasa

ii. The Present Perfect Continuous

It is used for an action which started at some time in the past and it is still going on.
For example:
They have been singing since morning
He has been complaining for an hour

29
Its formula
He / she / it / = + has + been + …ing
I / we / you / they / + have + been + …ing

How to Ask and Answer a question

When a sentence commences with a singular subject, we begin with Has + subject + been + …
ing
When a sentence commences with a plural subject, we begin with Have + subject + been + …ing

For example:
Have they been singing since morning?
Yes, they have been singing since morning
No, they have not been singing since morning

Has she been complaining for an hour?

Yes, she has been complaining for an hour
No, she has not been complaining for an hour

iii. The Past Perfect

It describes an action completed before a certain moment in the past
For example:
I had given her the book
We had played the game
Its formula:
Subject + had + Past participle form of a verb

How to Ask and Answer a question

We start with Had + subject + Past participle form of a verb

For example:
Had I given her the book?

30
Yes, you had given her the book
No, you had not given her the book

Had we played the game?

Yes, we had played the game
No, we had not played the game

iv. The Past Perfect Continuous

It describes the action that began before a certain point in the past and continued up to that time
For example:
I had been working there for two years
He had been teaching since 1990

Its formula
Subject + had + been + …ing

How to Ask and Answer a question

We begin with Had + subject + been + …ing

For example:
Had I been working there for two years?
Yes, you had been working there for two years
No, you had not been working there for two years

Had he been teaching since 1990?

Yes, he had been teaching since 1990
No, he had not been teaching since 1990

Passive and Active Voice

The term voice refers to a form of a verb which shows whether what is denoted by a subject does
something or has something done to it.

31
For example: We swept the class

The class was swept

Types of Voice

In English language, there are two types of voice; Active and Passive voice.

 Active voice
This is when a verb form shows that the subject has done something. In this voice, the subject of
the sentence performs an action. The subject appears at the beginning of the clause or sentence.

For example:

Mary visited Anna

We invite our best
I have seen a thief
I shall bring you a book
 Passive voice
This is when a verb form shows that something has been done to the subject. Or is the one in
which the action of the sentence is performed by the object. In this a sentence begins with an
object

For example:

Anna was visited by Mary

Our best friend is invited by us
A thief has been seen by me
A book shall be brought by me
Note;

 It should be noted that passive voice is only possible with the transitive verbs ( the ones
that carries an object )

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  Passive voice allows a speaker or writer to mention or omit the subject stressing the
focus to what has been done and not the doer (agent)
How to change Active Voice into Passive Voice
In changing the active voice into passive voice we are to consider:
i/ Tenses and aspect
ii/ Verb to be (am, is, was, are, were, be, been, being,)
iii/ Personal pronouns (I-WE, YOU,HE, SHE, IT-THEY=SUBJECTIVE CASE
and me, us, you, her/hers/him, it and them.
The construction involves the arrangement of the clause elements from SVO to OVS whereby
the doer (s) is either omitted or made to be an adverbial introduced by the preposition “by”

Rules for changing Active Voice to Passive Voice

i. Separate a sentence into a subject, verb and object

For example: Juma wrote a letter.

S v o
ii. The object of the sentence must be turned into subject.
For example; A letter was written by Juma
iii. The verb to be form must be inserted according to the appropriate tense of the verb.

iv. The participle of the verb must be used.

For example: The letter was written by Juma

v. Add the preposition “by” soon after the verb.

vi. The subject must be changed into an object
For example; The letter was written by Juma

Active and Passive Voice with Regard to Tenses and Aspects

1. Present Simple Tense

Form: Am / is / are + Participle
For example
i. We play netball
= Netball is played by us
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 ii. He helps students.
= Students are helped by him
iii. Does he help me?
= Am I helped by him.

2. Simple Past Tense

Form: Was / were + by + Participle

For examples;

Active voice passive voice

i. She wrote a letter. A letter was written by her

ii. I drove a car to the garage A car was driven by me to the garage
iii. He bought the bicycles The bicycles were bought by him.
3. Present Continuous Tense

Form: is / are + being + past participle

For example:

i. She is teaching the students.

- The students are being taught by him
ii. My friend is washing cloths
- Cloths are being painted by my father.

4. Past Continuous

Formula: Was / Were + Being + Participle

For example;
i. Komba was teaching us
- We were being taught by Komba
ii. We were eating rice
-Rice was being eaten by us

34
 5. Present Perfect
Formula: Have / has + been + Past participle
For example:
I have killed a snake.
- A snake has been killed by me.
Johani have invited you to the wedding.
-You have been invited to the wedding by John.

6. Past Perfective
Formula: Had + been + Participle
For example;
I had killed a snake.
= A snake had been killed by me
John had invited you to the wedding.
= You had been invited to the weeding by John.

7. Present Perfect Continuous

Formula: Has / have + been + being + Participle
For example:
Anna has been studying English
= English has been being studied by Anna
He has been peeling potatoes
= Potatoes have been being peeled by him

8. Past Perfect Continuous

Formula: Had + been + Being + Participle

35
For example:
We had been being fetching water
= water had been being fetched by us
Students had been studying English
= English had been being studied by students

9. Future Tense
Formula: Shall / will + Be + Participle
For example:
Juma will marry aisha
= Aisha will be married by Juma
I shall help Juma to wash cloths
= Juma will be helped by me to wash clothes

10. Future Continuous

Formula: Shall / will + be + being + Participle
For example:
I shall be sweeping the class
=The class will be being swept by me
He will be directing people
= People will be being directed by him

11. Future Perfect

Formula: Shall / will + have + been + Participle
For example:
I shall have seen her
= She will have been seen by me
James will have taught us

36
 = We shall have been taught by James
Direct and Indirect speech

Speech refers to a talk or dialogue between two people

Types of Speech

There are two types of speeches; namely, direct speech and indirect speech

i. Direct speech
Direct speech is the ones that repeats the words of a person exactly in his own words
to someone.
For example: She said, “Mary sings well.”

ii. Indirect speech

It expresses the essence of the main points of a person words with a few modification.
For example: She said that Mary sang well

Note: 1. The indirect speech should be placed between the quotation marks or inverted
commas.
2. No inverted commas and commas which are used in indirect speech
For example: Mary said that she wanted to study medicine
3. Tenses, aspects, pronouns and words indication nearness of time and position are
changed:
For example: Juma said to me, “I waited for you here today.”
Juma told me that he had waited for me there that day.
Rules: 1. Reporting verbs in present or future tense remain unchanged
For example: Penina says, “ I shall g to Dodoma tomorrow’”
Penina says that she will go to Dodoma tomorrow

Angel says, “I will be back soon.”

Angel says that she will be back soon
2. If the reporting verb is in the past tense the reported verbs change

37
 For example: Direct Speech Indirect Speech
Simple present Simple past
President continuous Past continuous
Present perfect Past perfect
Present perfect continuous Past perfect continuous
Simple past Past perfect
Simple future Future continuous
May Might
Must Had to
Had better
Ought
Used

Examples: Henry said, “I like teaching.”

Henry said that he likes teaching.

“I am writing my letter to my boss,” Neema said to me

Neema told me that she is writing a letter to her boss.

“I have been teaching English for seven years,” Rama said

Rama said that he had been teaching English for seven years

“You may go,” the teacher said to me

The teacher told me that I might go then

3. Reporting speech expressing universal truth or habit fact is not changed

For example: My teacher said, “The earth rotates from east.”
My teacher said that the earth rotates from east

“I prefer coffee,” John said

John said that he prefers coffee

38
 4. Reporting words expressing an historic event, habit and time clause are not changed.
For example: My sister said, “Tanganyika got independence in 1961.”
My sister said that Tanganyika got independence in 1961

Mary said, “I like swimming’”

Mary said that she likes swimming

“When I entered in the class, Ally was making noise,” said the teacher
The teacher said that when he entered in the class Ally was making noise

5. Other reporting verbs which can be used are; informed, stated, reported and replied

Pronouns in Indirect speech

The personal pronouns change as follows in indirect speech
Direct Speech Indirect Speech
Masculine Feminine
I He She
You He She
You Him Her
Your His Her
Me Him Her
My His her
Myself Himself myself

Words denoting Time and Position

Direct speech Indirect Speech

This That
These Those

39
 Now Then
Ago Before
Last night The previous night, the night before
Next day The following day or the day after
Today That day
Tonight That night
Yesterday The previous day or the day before
Tomorrow The next day, the following day or the day after
The day before yesterday The day before the previous day or two days before
The day after tomorrow The day after the next day or in two days the following day
Next week The coming week
Just Then
Here There
Thus So
Come Go

Questions or interrogative sentence in reported speech

Here the reported verb is changed into: ask, enquire, demand, wonder, want, to know, questioned
or interrogated.
For example: “where do you want to know?” he asked to me
He asked me where I wanted to go

“Where has he gone?” he askes

He questioned that where she had gone

“What do you expect from me?” Mary mother said to Andrew

Mary wanted to know what Andrew expected for her

40
 “Why do you waste your time?” my mother said to me
My mother questioned my why I was wasting the time

Whether or if is used with a sentence starting with auxiliary verb

For example: “Do you have any ideal on law?” Jane asked me
Jane asked me whether I had any ideal on law

“Are you serious?” she asked me

She asked me if I was serious
That is not used with who, whom, whose, what, which, when, why, where, and how
For example: “Who told you about my wedding?” Mary asked me
Mary questioned me who had told me about her wedding

Imperative sentences in Reported Speech

Reporting verb is changed to a verb indicating command, request, order, or advice. Reporting
verb may include: command, order, tell, request, beg, ask, desire, advice, urge, etc

For example: “Don’t play with me.” She told me

She ordered me not to play with her

“Please teach English.” Asha said to me

Asha requested me to teach her English

Exclamatory sentences in Reported speech

Here the reporting verbs changes to the following manner
Exclaim with + joy, sorrow, fear, anger, wander, surprise, pail, applaud, regret and cure
For example: “What a beautiful girl! Marther is!”

41
 I exclaimed with wander that Marther is a very beautiful girl

“What a grave mistake!? Said Joseph

Joseph exclaimed with anger that he had committed a grave mistake

“Oh! What an excellent idea you gave me!’ he said to me

He exclaimed with wander that I had an excellent idea

Parts of speech/word classes

Word Classes
A word class is traditional known as Part of speech refers to a set of words which form a class in
terms of their similarities of form and meaning.
In English language there are eight word classes which are; Nouns, Pronouns, Verbs, Adverbs,
Conjunctions, Adjectives, Prepositions and interjections. However, those word classes have been
categorized into two major classes: Major word classes and Minor word classes

1. Major word classes

This group comprises of Nouns, Verbs, adverbs and Adjectives

 Nouns
A noun is a word used to name a person, place, thing, an idea or quality of mind.

For example:

A noun John refers to a name of person

A noun Mtwara refers to a name of place

42
 A noun book refers to a name of thing

A noun anger refers to a name of an idea of mind

Types of Nouns

Nouns are divided into the following categories

 Proper nouns
A proper noun is the name of particular people, things and places

For example: Tames, Juma, Asha, Aneth, Mtwara, Lindi,Tanzania, etc

 Common nouns
A common noun is a name given in common to every person, place, or thing of the same class or
kind.

For example: Boy, woman, teacher, student, region, district, village, book, chair, phone etc

 Collective nouns
They are names indicating a collection of things or people

For example: Band for musicians, batch/class for students, bench for magistrates, bevy for ladies,
bunch for flowers or keys, army for soldiers, team for people, flock for sheep etc

 Abstract nouns
An abstract noun is a name of quality, action or state which exists in the mind. The abstract noun
cannot be realized by any organ of sense

For example: Freedom, anger, beauty, joy, sorrow, love, death, kindness, etc

Formation of singular and plural nouns

The plural nouns in English language are formed in different ways.

i. The plural of nouns is generally formed by adding-s to the singular.

For example: Singular Plural

Girl girls
Boy boys
Pen pens
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 Desk desks
Book books

ii. But nouns ending in –o, –s, -sh, ch, -x, form the plural by adding –es to the singular;
as
Singular Plural
Mango mangoes
Wish wishes
Church churches
Box boxes
Brush brushes

iii. Nouns ending in –y preceded by a consonant, form their plural by changing –y into –i
and then adding –es.

For example: Singular Plural

Baby babies
Army armies
Family families
Lady ladies
Story stories

iv. Some nouns ending in –f or –fe form their plural by changing –f or –fe into –v and
then adding –es; as
Singular Plural
Thief thieves
Life lives
Loaf loaves
Wife wives
Wolf wolves

v. Few nouns form their plural by changing the vowel which is found inside the word of
the singular form : as
Singular Plural
Man men
Woman women

44
 Goose geese
Mouse mice
Tooth teeth
Foot feet

vi. There are few nouns which form their plural by adding –en to the singular; as
Singular Plural
Ox oxen
Child children

vii. Some nouns have the singular and plural alike; as

Swine, sheep, deer, salmon, aircraft, spacecraft, series, species etc

viii. Some names of instruments and dresses which have two parts form a kind of pair use
only plural form; as
Bellows, scissors, tongs, pincers, spectacles, trousers, drawers, jeans, tights,
shorts, pajamas, etc

 Verb
Is a word that expresses an action. Verbs are divided into two groups; namely, Main / lexical
verbs, and Auxiliary verbs

i. Main/lexical verbs
Lexical verbs are verbs that have lexical or denotation meaning rather than grammatical,

e.g. Burst, run, Change, contain

Lexical verbs are sometimes called full verbs, a term which is used to indicate that they can
combine with auxiliaries but can also do without them

Verbs conjugation

Lexical verbs have different verb forms called ‘conjugation’ e. g.

Base form s-form ing form ed-form en form

walk, walks, walking walked walked

45
Play plays, playing played played

Eat eats eating ate eaten

Buy, buys, buying bought bought

ii. Auxiliary verbs

They mark grammatical function to help the main/lexical verbs; as

• It is shining
• We are students
• A boy has gone away
• He did not come early
The italicized words from the above examples are auxiliary verbs

Types of auxiliary verbs

i. Primary auxiliary
ii. Secondary auxiliary
i. Primary auxiliary
The primary auxiliary verbs are helping verbs that can sometimes stand on their own without
main or lexical verbs. These are ‘be’, ‘do’ and ‘have’

The form of verb “Be” are:

Present: be Am, Is,

Past: was, Were
Participle: being . been
Form of verb ‘do’ are:

Present: do/does
Past: did
Form of have are:

46
 Present: have/has
Past: had

ii. Modal Auxiliary verbs

Modal auxiliaries are also called secondary auxiliary verbs .Modal auxiliaries do not have –s , -
ing form or -ed participle. However, some of the modal verbs have special form to make past

Present Past

• May might
• Shall should
• Will would
• Can could
Modal auxiliary verbs that do not have past from include:

• Must
• Dare
• Need
• Ought
• Used to

Contraction of negative modal verbs

• Positive unconstracted contracted

• Can cannot can’t
• Could could not couldn’t
• Might might not mightn’t
• Shall shall not shan’t
• Should should not shouldn’t
• Would would not wouldn’t
• Must must not mustn’t

Asking question using auxiliary verbs

1. Yes/No question using Primary auxiliary verbs

When forming yes/no questions using auxiliary verbs usually the auxiliary verbs are placed at
the sentence initial position followed by the noun or pronoun.

47
For example:
Is he…….
Are they……
Was it……
Have you…….
ii.Wh- questions

Wh –questions are introduced by wh- words such as what, why, where, when etc

For example: Who said ………?

Who came?
Who is your brother?
Where are you?

Giving answers to Yes/no Questions

Response to yes/no question begins with Yes/No followed by the a noun or pronoun then the
auxiliary verbs . When the response is No, the negation is put to auxiliary.

For example:

Are you happy?

Yes I am happy or No I am not happy
Can you read?
Yes I Can read or No I cannot read

Giving answers to Wh-Questions

The response to Wh –question is relatively depending with one’s opinion.

 Adjectives
An adjective is the word that is used to describe a noun or pronoun. That is they give more
information about the nouns or pronouns
48
 For example: The tall man crossed the road.

An adjective makes a noun or pronoun more specific by giving details about it. It helps you to
have a clearer picture of what is being talked about.

Positions of Adjectives
Adjectives occupy two typical positions in a sentence.
(a) An adjective may come before the noun it modifies as in the following sentences:

The young man helped the girl.

The excited boy received his reward.

We can say that an adjective can occupy the position immediately before the noun or pronoun it
modifies. Such adjectives are called attributive adjectives.

(b) An adjective can also be separated from the noun and put after a verb to function as the
complement of the verb. In this case, such adjectives are called predicative adjectives.

For examples: He appears happy.

The case became serious.
Miss Ane is beautiful.

Types of Adjectives
Adjectives are of different types such as
i. Adjectives of quality
They give a quality of a noun
Examples: The tall boy
The beautiful girl
The small dog

49
 ii. Adjectives of quantity
These adjectives show the quantity of noun
For example: Little water in the bucket
Much salt to the food
Many students in the class

iii. Possessive Adjectives

They show ownership or belongings of something or somebody. They include words like his,
her, my, our, their, etc. They show possession. A possessive adjective makes the meaning of
noun more definite.
Examples: This is his jacket.
These are our pens.

IV. Demonstrative Adjectives

These are adjectives that point out nouns.
Examples: I like this tree.
I don’t like that tree.
‘This’ and ‘these’ are generally used for things that are near. ‘That’ and ‘those’ are generally
used for things that are further away. ‘This’ and ‘that’ go with singular countable nouns while
‘these’ and ‘those’ are used with plural countable nouns.

V. Interrogative Adjectives
These adjectives are used with nouns to ask questions.
Examples: What book are you studying?
Which car is yours?
Whose money was found?

Vi. Distributive adjectives

They show the distribution of nouns
For example: Each student

50
 Every teacher

Roles of adjectives
Adjectives show degree existing to a noun. There are three levels of degree which are:
Positive Comparative Superlative
Tall taller tallest
Happy happier happiest
Handsome more handsome most handsome

 Adverbs
They are words which describe or modify verbs, adjectives or other adverbs
For example: I entered slowly
I was very happy
He was so quickly

Position of Adverbs
Adverbs can stand at the beginning, mid or at the end of the sentence
For example: Slowly, I approached to the man
I slowly approached the man
I approached the man slowly

Types of adverbs
i. Adverbs of time
They tell us when something happens or is done
For example: He passed away yesterday
I shall come few minutes
We shall remember you always

ii. Adverbs of place

They tell us where something is done or happens
For example: She entered in the class

51
 We cannot stop here for lunch
I went there early

iii. Adverbs of manner

These adverbs show how something is done or happens
For example: I kissed her quickly
I spoke beautifully
She smiles well

iv. Adverbs of degree

They show the level or extent that something is done or happens. It includes words like very, so,
too, fairly, etc
For example: The game was very interesting
We are so proud of you
They are too lazy

v. Adverbs of frequency
They show how often something is done or happens. It includes words like again, almost,
always, ever, never, frequently, often, rarely, normally, occasionally, etc
For example: I always visit my friends
She often comes to me
We rarely go to the class

2. Minor word classes

This group is made up by Pronouns, conjunctions, Prepositions and Interjection.

 Pronouns
Pronouns are words used in a place of nouns. They are used in a piece of writing or speech to
avoid repeating a previously stated noun. Pronouns are used instead of nouns

For example: he , she, it, they, that, this, mine, yours, etc

Types of Pronouns

52
Pronouns are of different types depending on the grammatical functions they perform in a
sentence. Here are some pronoun types.

i. Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns are those used in place of names of people: as

He, she he, it, I, we, you , they, me, us, etc

Personal Pronouns show Number and Person

Personal pronouns can be in: (a) Singular number e.g. he/she, it, and I,

(b) Plural number, e.g. we, you, they

ii. Reflexive Pronouns

A reflexive pronoun refers back to the subject of a sentence. Reflexive pronouns always end in –
‘self’ (for singular) and - ‘selves’ (for plural). They appear as: myself, yourself, himself, herself,
itself, oneself (for singular) and ourselves, yourselves, themselves (for plural).

iii. Possessive pronouns

Possessive pronouns are used to show possession. That is, showing something belongs to
someone or something. It includes words like: hers, yours, his, theirs, ours, mine, its etc

iv. Interrogative Pronouns

To interrogate means to ask questions. Interrogative pronouns therefore are used to ask questions
and they include such words as: who, whom, whose, what, which, where, whoever. They are also
referred to as WH - questions.

v. Demonstrative Pronouns
The word ‘demonstrate’ means to show. Demonstrative pronouns therefore are used to show or
point at things or people. In English language, the following words are used to point at things or
people:

This (singular), these (plural), that (singular) and those (plural

53
vi. Relative Pronouns
They are formed by Wh- words to represent things, people, and places. It includes words such as
who, whom, whose, and which.

vii. Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns as the name suggests, are not definite or specific in their function. For
instance, they do not point out any particular thing or person. They are used for both persons and
things when these are used in general terms. Here are some indefinite pronouns:

Everybody, everyone, anyone, anybody, someone, somebody, some, several, all,

few, none, both, one, any, neither, either, each, much, many

 Conjunctions
Conjunction is a word that connects other words, phrases or sentences
For example: Ally and Juma are friends
Boys and girls are late
Mary is playing but Helena is studying

Types of conjunctions
i. Coordinate conjunctions
They are used to join words or group of words which have the same grammatical level. They
include words like But, and, or, etc
For example: I like mangoes and apples
Jane is sad but Anna is happy
You can ask me or my friend

ii. Subordinate conjunctions

They are the words that are used to join units of different levels, and they normally appear at the
begging of the dependent clause. They include words like if, unless, while, though, although,
despite, inspite of, however, moreover, even if, even though etc
For example: Peter sings well, although he is sick
Though it was raining, she managed to come

54
 I cannot stop loving you, despite you are going to marry

iii. Correlative conjunctions

They are pair of conjunctions used to join group of words in a sentence. This includes words
like:
Not only.....but also....., ....either....or..., .....neither.......nor....., too.....to etc
For example: Mary is ether in the class or in the room
We saw neither the teacher nor students coming to help us
It is too early to propose you
Not only me but also my friends saw the thief

 Prepositions
Preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to show the position, time, and intention
For example: I went near Mikindani
We saw a bird on the house
I found the new pen in my bag
I will come to you at Easter

Types of prepositions
i. Simple prepositions
They are made up by single preposition. It includes words like at, off, in, on, from, by etc
For example: I went on foot
She put off the light
She was found in bed

ii. Complex prepositions

These prepositions contain more than one word. It includes words like according to, near to,
besides of, beside of, among of, etc
For example: We went out of the class
Inspite of being the first, she is not happy
We stood near to our teacher

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 In order to pass the exam you need to study hard

 Interjections
These are words which express feelings or emotion of the speaker: This includes words like:
Hush!, ouch!, ah!, woh!, bravo!, gosh!, my God! etc
For example: my God! Are the one?
Ah! What is wrong with you?
Bravo! You have won

Concordial Relationship
The term concord (sometimes known as agreement) is used to refer to a grammatical relationship
existing between elements of the sentence, whereby the form of one of the elements necessarily
requires a corresponding form of another
For example: She likes singing
From the sentence above there is a concord between the subject “Juma” and the verb “likes”
because it is a present tense

Types of Concordial Relationship

i. Subject – Verb concord
This is the agreement between the type of subject used and the verb in a sentence.
This means that a singular subject must be followed by a singular verb, while a plural
subject must be followed by a plural verb.
For example: Juma comes hear all the time
Mary often wakes up at 6:30 am
The orphans do not have parents
We know the answer

ii. Subject – verb (to) be concord

This is the agreement between the type of subject used against the type of verb (to)
be. Be is the only verb in English where Subject–verb concord holds for both the
simple present and past verb forms.

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 For example: He is absent
Jane was here
I am tired
They are three only

iii. Indefinite words with verbs

Certain words have been identified as indefinite expressions, because their references
are not particularised or specified. Examples of indefinite expressions are each, every,
anyone, anybody, somebody, nobody, nothing, something, someone, no one, etc.
These indefinite expressions require a singular verb.

For example:
a. Nobody knows tomorrow.
c. Someone wants to deceive me.
d. No one was there.
e. Something has entered in my ear.
iv. Amount words with verbs
Amount or quantity words can be classified into those that occur with either countable or
non-countable nouns, or those that hover between the two classes of noun. Amount words
such as few, several, many, etc., which qualify countable nouns must be followed by
plural verbs
For example:
a. A few of these oranges taste fine.
b. Many children have died.
c. Some of the milk is sour.

v.Complement with verb ( auxiliary verbs)

Concord between the verb and its subject does not depend on the nature of number of the
subject complement
For example:
a. The boys are a nuisance.
b. Vegetables are a necessity for his survival.

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 c. Women’s best friend is diamonds.

vi. Collective nouns with verb

Subject–verb concord for collective nouns is not as straightforward as other types of

nouns; this is because singular and plural verbs are interchangeable in certain situations.
By its nature, a collective noun requires a singular verb, because it is considered as a
single indivisible unit or body.
For example:
a. The committee is meeting today.
b. The crowd was dispersed by the police.
c. The basketball teams were selected yesterday
d. Their families are happy
e. The teams play well.

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