Improving Your Literacy
Compiled by Mrs. D. Wittmann
Finding Meaning When you are reading and come across an unfamiliar word, you can often look at the context to help you figure out at least an approximate definition for that word. The other words in the rest of the sentence or paragraph influence and clarify the unfamiliar word and provide its context. The context provides a setting for the word. Further, context clues help provide meaning and usage for the word.
Even if you don't know a certain term, you can put together clues from the context, a clue's tip-off phrase, or a suggested idea, to formulate a guess as to the meaning of a particular word. In addition, a sample context is a sentence or a part of a sentence that clarifies a definition, distinguishes similar meanings, and illustrates the level and mode of usage. The nice young man courteously opened the door. a. Hastily b. Rudely c. Slowly d. Politely In this type of question, you need to find a synonym for the underscored word. By understanding the rest of the words in the sentence, you can assume that the young man was kind and polite in opening the door.
VIDEO SUMMARY Context - the other words and sentences around the word in question 1. Definition - is the word defined in the context? 2. Examples - does the context provide examples? 3. Synonyms - is there another word nearby that means the same thing? 4. Antonyms - is there another word nearby that means the opposite thing? 5. Substitution - choosing familiar word that maintains the original meaning of the sentence
The Four Types of Sentences Declarative sentence Imperative sentence Interrogative sentence Exclamatory sentence 1. A declarative sentence simply makes a statement or expresses an opinion. In other words, it makes a declaration. This kind of sentence ends with a period.
2. An imperative sentence gives a command or makes a request. It usually ends with a period but can, under certain circumstances, end with an exclamation point. 3. An interrogative sentence asks a question. This type of sentence often begins with who, what, where, when, why, how, or do, and it ends with a question mark. 4. An exclamatory sentence is a sentence that expresses great emotion such as excitement, surprise, happiness and anger, and ends with an exclamation point.
Phrases and Clauses A phrase is a group of words without a subject-verb component, used as a single part of speech. Examples: Best friend Needing help With the blue shirt For twenty days
A clause is a group of words containing a subject and verb. An independent clause is a simple sentence. It can stand on its own. Examples: She is hungry. I am feeling well today. A dependent clause cannot stand on its own. It needs an independent clause to complete a sentence. Dependent clauses often begin with such words as although, since, if, when,and because. Examples: Although she is hungry … Whoever is hungry … Because I am feeling well …
Run-On Sentences, Comma Splices, and Sentence Fragments Comma Splices and Run-ons Comma splices and run-on sentences are caused by punctuation errors and are corrected in similar ways. 1. A comma splice occurs when two independent clauses (groups of words that can stand alone as sentences) are joined together by a comma. COMMA SPLICE: Lazy Lou heard that a particular machine would do half his work, he ordered two. This sentence is a comma splice because the clauses on both sides of the comma are independent, meaning they can stand alone as complete sentences.
2. A run-on sentence occurs when two or more independent clauses are joined without punctuation or conjunctions. RUN-ON: I bought a gas grill two weeks ago I like to cook every day. This sentence is a run-on because it can be separated into two complete sentences. Sentence Fragments 3. A sentence needs to form a complete thought and have both a complete subject and a complete verb. Sentence fragments are usually missing one or more of these elements. EXAMPLES: Have been going to school regularly. (no subject) The teacher who said that grades don’t matter. (no complete verb) Helping Jackie decorate her car for the festival. (no subject or complete verb) Because I love to read and write. (not a complete thought)
Subject - Verb Agreement Subjects and verbs must AGREE with one another in number (singular or plural). Thus, if a subject is singular, its verb must also be singular; if a subject is plural, its verb must also be plural. Example: The list of items is / are on the desk. If you know that list is the subject, then you will choose is for the verb.
Examples: My aunt or my uncle is arriving by train today. Neither Juan nor Carmen is available. Either Kiana or Casey is helping today with stage decorations. There are four hurdles to jump. There is a high hurdle to jump. Here are the keys.
Verb Tenses Verbs come in three tenses: past, present, and future. The past is used to describe things that have already happened (e.g.,earlier in the day, yesterday, last week, three years ago). The present tense is used to describe things that are happening right now, or things that are continuous. The future tense describes things that have yet to happen (e.g.,later, tomorrow, next week, next year, three years from now).
Simple Present I read nearly every day. Simple Past Last night, I read an entire novel Simple Future I will read as much as I can this year.
Words Often Confused Homonyms: Words that have the same spelling and same pronunciation, but different meanings. Homographs: Words that have the same spelling, but different pronunciations and meanings. Homophones: Words that have the same pronunciation, but different spelling and different meanings.
End Punctuation End punctuation is the punctuation at the conclusion of a sentence. End punctuation tells the reader how to interpret each sentence. There are three types of end punctuation: periods, question marks, and exclamation points. Periods: Periods end complete sentences. Complete sentences are sentences that make simple statements and include a subject and a verb. Question Marks: Questions marks follow a sentence that asks a direct question. These are questions that seek information. Exclamation Points: An exclamation point indicates surprise or strong emotion. Exclamation points can also be used with sentences that make sharp commands.
More Punctuation A COMMA marks a slight break between different parts of a sentence. Used properly, commas make the meaning of sentences clear by grouping and separating words, phrases, and clauses. Many people are uncertain about the use of commas, though, and often sprinkle them throughout their writing without knowing the basic rules. Here are the main cases when you need to use a comma: in lists in direct speech to separate clauses to mark off certain parts of a sentence with 'however'
HYPHENS are used to link words and parts of words. accident-prone computer-aided good-looking sugar-free power-driven quick-thinking An em DASH, or long dash, is used: in pairs, to mark off information or ideas that are not essential to an understanding of the rest of the sentence: Thousands of children—like the girl in this photograph—have been left homeless. My son—where has he gone?—would like to meet you. to show other kinds of break in a sentence where a comma, semicolon, or colon would be traditionally used: One thing’s for sure—he doesn’t want to face the truth. Things have changed a lot in the last year—mainly for the better.
The Apostrophe The apostrophe ( ’ ) has two main uses: contractions and possessives. 1. CONTRACTIONS Contractions (e.g.,let’s, don’t, couldn’t, it’s, she’s) Many argue that they should not be used in formal writing. You should, of course, observe your publisher’s or instructor’s requirements.
2. The general rule for forming POSSESSIVES The general rule is that the possessive of a singular noun is formed by adding an apostrophe ands, whether the singular noun ends in s or not. the lawyer’s fee the child’s toy Xerox’s sales manager Tom Jones’s first album Jesus’s disciples Aeschylus’s finest drama anyone’s guess a week's vacation
NOTE: The apostrophe is seldom used to form a plural noun. The rare exception to the rule is when certain abbreviations, letters, or words are used as nouns, as in the following examples. Unless the apostrophe is needed to avoid misreading or confusion, omit it. He received four A’s and two B’s. We hired three M.D.’s and two D.O.’s. Be sure to cross your t’s and dot your i’s. Do we have more yes’s than no’s?
A quick guide to using the semicolon If you know how to use periods, you already know almost everything about how to use semicolons too. That is, most semicolons work grammatically like periods, slipping in between two complete sentences. Let me repeat that: they work just like periods. The difference is that periods SEPARATE two sentences; semicolons CONNECT them. Semicolons tell your reader that the two sentences on either side speak to each other or are part of the same idea. I have a big test tomorrow. I can't go out tonight. I have a big test tomorrow; I can't go out tonight.
There’s another, less common use for semicolons. Sometimes semicolons can function as a means for breaking up or clarifying a sentence that’s extremely long or that has several phrases or clauses that could potentially get muddled or confused. Think of these semicolons functioning as a kind of “heavier” version of the comma: We went to the store and bought hot dogs, hamburgers, and chicken; chips, pretzels, and potato salad; and ice cream, cookies, and chocolate cake. Remember the basic rule: usually semicolons do exactly the same thing (grammatically, not semantically) that periods do.
A quick guide to using the colon Colons follow independent clauses (clauses that could stand alone as sentences) and can be used to present an explanation, draw attention to something, or join ideas together. RIGHT: We covered many of the fundamentals in our writing class: grammar, punctuation, style, and voice. WRONG: The three types of transportation to get to New York are: train, car, or airplane. WRONG: I applied to grad schools in: New York, Massachusetts, and Hawaii.
Here is how to punctuate a sentence that starts with the dialogue tag: Mary said, “Call me tomorrow.” Notes: Comma before the opening quotation mark. Capital letter to indicate the beginning of a sentence inside the opening quotation mark. A period to end the quoted sentence. Closing quotation mark.
What happens when the dialogue tag is placed at the end of the sentence? “Call me tomorrow,” Mary said. Notes: Capital letter to indicate the beginning of a sentence inside the opening quotation mark. A comma to end the quoted sentence before the closing quotation mark that precedes the dialogue tag. Dialogue tag at the end with a period to end the sentence.
A Paragraph is a Combination of Sentences The Basics 1. Indent 2. Start every sentence with a capital letter. 3. End every sentence with an end mark. 4. Every paragraph has a topic sentence, a body, and a concluding sentence (beginning, middle, end)
The Topic Sentence The topic sentence is the first sentence of the paragraph. It introduces the main idea of the paragraph. The Body The body of the paragraph contains supporting details - facts, reasons, examples - to develop and support the topic sentence. The Concluding Sentence The concluding sentence is the final sentence of your paragraph The conclusion ties together everything mentioned in a paragraph.