Grammar Rules

noun a morpheme added at the beginning or end of a word to modify its meaning, such as prefixes and suffixes

verb to attach or fasten something to something else

• In linguistics, an affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word or word form.
• You can affix the stamp to the envelope before mailing it.
• I'll affix the bumper sticker to my car later.
• The artist decided to affix a small butterfly charm to the painting for added flair.

noun A repeated occurrence of an event.

adverb Another time; once more.

• The committee will need to review the proposal again before making a decision.
• Let's watch that movie again, I really enjoyed it.
• I can't believe she wore that outfit again, she needs some new clothes.
• After facing failure, he picked himself up and tried again, never giving up on his dreams.

noun a separate clause or provision in a document

• The research article provides a comprehensive analysis of the latest findings in the field.
• I read an interesting article about the benefits of meditation in a health magazine.
• Did you see that juicy article about the celebrity scandal?
• His actions were like a blank article, devoid of any substance or meaning.

noun the action or process of capitalizing words or letters

verb not applicable

adjective not applicable

adverb not applicable

pronoun not applicable

preposition not applicable

conjunction not applicable

interjection not applicable

article not applicable

• Proper capitalization is crucial in academic writing.
• Don't forget to use capitalization at the beginning of each sentence.
• I always mess up my capitalization when texting quickly.
• Capitalization of resources in developing countries is essential for economic growth.

noun the quantity or number needed to make a group complete

• The new furniture in the office is a perfect complement to the modern decor.
• The new rug really complements the couch in the living room.
• Those shoes totally complement your outfit, girl!
• Her kindness was a complement to his gruff demeanor.

noun a variation of a verb in a language that indicates tense, person, number, aspect, mood, or voice

adjective related to the combination of elements in a group or set

• The Spanish verb 'hablar' undergoes a different conjugation for each subject pronoun.
• I struggle with conjugation when learning a new language.
• I need to brush up on my verb conjugation before the test.
• Conjugation is like solving a puzzle, fitting each verb form into its proper place.

adjective clearly defined or determined; not vague or uncertain

• There is a definite need for more research in this area.
• I am definitely going to the party tonight.
• That movie was for sure a definite hit with audiences.
• Her smile was a definite ray of sunshine on a cloudy day.

noun a distributive number or expression

adjective relating to or serving to distribute or divide among a group or individuals

• The distributive property states that a(b + c) = ab + ac.
• You can use the distributive property to simplify this equation.
• The distributive rule makes math problems easier.
• The distributive nature of leadership allows for shared responsibilities among team members.

verb a word used to describe an action, state, or occurrence

preposition a word governing, and usually preceding, a noun or pronoun and expressing a relation to another word or element in the clause

conjunction a word used to connect clauses or sentences or to coordinate words in the same clause

• All students passed the exam except for one.
• Everyone is going to the party except for Sarah.
• I like all fruits except durian, it smells terrible.
• The garden was beautiful except for the ugly statue in the corner.

verb a word that expresses an action or a state of being

preposition a word that shows the relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and other words in a sentence

• All members of the committee voted in favor of the proposal, excepting one abstention.
• Everyone agreed to go to the party, excepting Sarah who had other plans.
• I like all the songs on the album, excepting the last track.
• The garden was filled with colorful flowers, excepting the one lonely rose bush in the corner.

noun a punctuation mark (.) used at the end of a sentence to indicate a full stop or completion

adjective complete or finished without possibility of further change

• The report must be submitted by the deadline, full stop.
• I told him I don't want to go out tonight, full stop.
• I'm done with this drama, full stop.
• She finally decided to cut ties with him, full stop.

noun the whole system and structure of a language or of languages in general, usually taken as consisting of syntax and morphology (including inflections) and sometimes also phonology and semantics

• It is important to have a strong grasp of grammar in order to communicate effectively.
• I need to brush up on my grammar before the big presentation.
• Her grammar game is on point.
• Good grammar is the foundation of clear communication.

noun a person who is an expert in grammar; someone who studies or teaches grammar

• The grammarian carefully analyzed the text for any errors in syntax or punctuation.
• My friend is a bit of a grammarian and always corrects my grammar when we text.
• The grammarian in our group is always the first to point out when someone uses 'your' instead of 'you're'.
• As a grammarian of emotions, she could read between the lines of his text messages.

noun a person who studies or is an expert in grammar

adjective relating to or conforming to the rules of grammar

• The grammatic structure of the sentence was flawless.
• She always pays attention to grammatic errors in her writing.
• I can't stand it when people mess up their grammatic.
• The grammatic of the situation was so twisted, it was hard to follow.

noun a morpheme that is added into the middle of a word

verb to insert a morpheme into the middle of a word

• The infix notation is a mathematical notation where every operator is written in between their operands.
• You need to remember the rules for using infix notation in math class.
• I always get confused with the infix stuff in algebra.
• Infixing a positive attitude can greatly improve your outlook on life.

verb to change or vary the form of (a word) to express different grammatical categories such as tense, mood, voice, aspect, person, number, and gender

• The verb 'to be' inflects for tense, aspect, mood, and person.
• I noticed how her voice inflects when she gets excited.
• His tone inflects when he's lying.
• The new information caused her emotions to inflect in unexpected ways.

noun a change in the form of a word that reflects a grammatical function or attribute, such as tense, mood, person, number, case, and gender

verb not applicable

adjective relating to or characterized by inflection

adverb not applicable

pronoun not applicable

preposition not applicable

conjunction not applicable

interjection not applicable

article not applicable

• The linguist studied the inflection patterns of the language.
• She noticed a slight inflection in his voice when he spoke about his ex-girlfriend.
• I can't stand her inflection, it's so annoying.
• The rise and fall of the stock market showed a positive inflection in the economy.

noun something that is constant or unchanging

adjective not changing or capable of being changed; constant

• The laws of physics are invariable and do not change under different conditions.
• Her love for chocolate is invariable, she can never resist a piece.
• My dad's rule about cleaning your room is invariable - no excuses!
• His commitment to his goals is invariable, like a steady flame that never flickers.

noun a state or quality of being irregular

adjective not regular or predictable

• The accountant discovered an irregularity in the company's financial records.
• There seems to be some irregularity with your order, it hasn't been processed yet.
• I can't believe the irregularity in his excuse for being late, it's so obvious he's lying.
• The irregularity in her schedule made it difficult for her to maintain a routine.

noun a meaningful linguistic unit consisting of a word or a word element that cannot be divided into smaller meaningful parts

• In linguistics, a morpheme is the smallest grammatical unit in a language.
• I learned about morphemes in my linguistics class.
• Do you understand how morphemes work in this language?
• Each morpheme is like a puzzle piece that fits together to form words.

noun a negative statement or denial

• Negation is the act of denying or refuting something.
• Negation means saying 'no' or expressing disagreement.
• Negation ain't my thing, I prefer to keep things positive.
• In the garden of positivity, negation is like a weed that needs to be removed.

noun the use of components in a sentence that are grammatically the same; or similar in their construction, sound, meaning, or meter

adjective describing something that is parallel in structure or form

• The author used parallelism in his writing to emphasize the similarities between the two main characters.
• I noticed the parallelism in how both of them handled the situation.
• The parallelism between their outfits was on point.
• The parallelism of their goals led them down the same path.

noun A word or phrase that is used to explain or add information to a sentence, usually enclosed in brackets, dashes, or commas.

• It is important to use parentheses to set off additional information within a sentence.
• Don't forget to add parentheses around the date in your essay.
• I always use those round brackets (parentheses) when I'm texting.
• The parentheses in her speech hinted at a deeper meaning underlying her words.

noun the part of a sentence or clause containing a verb and stating something about the subject

• In linguistics, a predicate is one of the two main parts of a sentence, the other being the subject.
• The teacher explained that the predicate is the part of the sentence that tells what the subject is doing.
• I never really understood what the heck a predicate was until my English teacher broke it down for me.
• Just like a detective's investigation, the predicate of a sentence reveals the action or state of the subject.

verb to base or establish something on a particular principle or idea

• The success of the project is predicated on thorough research and planning.
• Whether we win the game is predicated on how well we play together as a team.
• His popularity is predicated on his ability to make people laugh.
• The stability of their relationship is predicated on honesty and trust.

noun the act of stating or affirming something about the subject of a sentence

adjective relating to or involving predication

• The philosopher's theory of predication is based on the idea that every sentence can be broken down into a subject and a predicate.
• I'm still trying to wrap my head around the concept of predication in grammar class.
• I don't get why we have to learn about predication, it's so confusing.
• In the world of marketing, predication plays a crucial role in determining consumer behavior.

adjective Reflexive is an adjective that describes a verb or pronoun that refers back to the subject of the sentence.

• The reflexive pronoun 'myself' is used to refer back to the subject of the sentence.
• I always find myself getting lost in this neighborhood, it's so confusing.
• She's always talking to herself, it's kinda weird.
• His reflexive behavior towards criticism shows his insecurity.

noun a regular customer or member

adjective having the same shape, size, or arrangement as others of its kind; uniform

• It is important to maintain a regular schedule for optimal productivity.
• I try to stick to a regular routine to stay organized.
• I'm a regular at that coffee shop, they know my order by heart.
• He's a regular at the gym, always putting in the effort to stay in shape.

noun a word or phrase that limits or restricts the meaning of another word or phrase

adjective limiting or controlling someone or something

• The new policy has implemented more restrictive measures to ensure compliance.
• The rules are getting more and more restrictive around here.
• Man, these restrictions are really cramping my style.
• Her overbearing attitude felt like a restrictive cage around me.

noun a prescribed guide for conduct or action

verb to exercise control, dominion, or direction over; govern

• According to the rule of law, all citizens are equal in the eyes of the court.
• The rule is that you have to wait in line like everyone else.
• The rule is to always keep it real with your friends.
• In life, it seems like the only rule is to expect the unexpected.

noun a word or a group of words that functions as the subject or object of a verb

adjective having a firm basis in reality and therefore important, meaningful, or considerable

• The report presented a substantive analysis of the current economic trends.
• The meeting covered a lot of substantive topics about the project.
• I need some substantive evidence before I believe you.
• His contribution to the team was substantive, like the foundation of a building.

noun a word or phrase that functions as a modifier of a verb, adjective, or other adverb

adjective relating to syntax or the arrangement of words in a sentence

• The syntactic structure of the sentence was carefully analyzed by the linguist.
• I don't really understand the syntactic rules of this language.
• I'm struggling with the whole syntactic thing, it's so confusing.
• The syntactic harmony of the poem added depth to its meaning.

noun the arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences in a language

adjective relating to or denoting syntax

• The syntax of this programming language is quite strict and requires precise formatting.
• I'm still trying to get the hang of the syntax for this new software.
• Don't worry about the syntax, just type it out however you want.
• The artist played with the syntax of the painting, creating a unique composition.

preposition a word governing, and usually preceding, a noun or pronoun and expressing a relation to another word or element in the clause

conjunction a word used to connect clauses or sentences or to coordinate words in the same clause

• The data suggests that the new algorithm is more efficient than the previous one.
• I think pizza is better than burgers.
• I'd rather chill at home than go out tonight.
• His words cut deeper than any knife could.

noun a phonetic phenomenon in which vowel sounds change within a root or word to indicate changes in tense, aspect, or mood

• The linguist explained the concept of ablaut in great detail during the lecture.
• I still can't wrap my head around the whole ablaut thing in language class.
• Ablaut sounds like some crazy language voodoo to me.
• The changing vowel sounds in the word 'sing', 'sang', and 'sung' demonstrate ablaut in action.

noun the use of an entirely different word or root for different forms of a given word

• Suppletion is a linguistic phenomenon where an irregular form is used to fill in a gap in a paradigm.
• I never realized how common suppletion is in English until I started studying linguistics.
• Who knew that language could have such crazy suppletion going on?
• In a way, suppletion is like finding a shortcut in a maze of grammar rules.

noun a punctuation mark (,) used before the conjunction 'and' or 'or' in a list of items

adjective describing the specific comma style used in the Oxford University Press style guide

• The use of the Oxford comma is a common practice in academic writing.
• I always use the Oxford comma when I'm writing for school.
• Forget about the Oxford comma, no one cares about that stuff.
• The Oxford comma is like the cherry on top of a well-written sentence.

noun a noun refers to a person, place, thing, or idea. In this case, 'law' is a noun that refers to a rule or principle that governs behavior or the functioning of a system.

• According to Muphry's law, any errors in a written text will be noticed by the reader.
• Hey, did you hear about Muphry's law? It's like Murphy's law but for writing!
• Muphry's law is like the grammar police showing up when you least expect it.
• Muphry's law is a reminder that perfection is elusive, especially in the world of writing.

noun a belief in or advocacy of a particular linguistic prescription, as in grammar or usage

• Prescriptivism is a linguistic ideology that emphasizes following strict rules in language usage.
• Some people are really into prescriptivism and get upset when others don't follow grammar rules.
• Prescriptivism is like grammar police, always telling you what you should and shouldn't say.
• In the world of writing, prescriptivism can sometimes feel like a straightjacket, limiting creativity and expression.

noun a word or phrase that is the subject or object of the verb in a sentence

adjective a word that describes or modifies a noun or pronoun

• The absolute form of the adjective 'good' is 'best'.
• You always have to use the absolute form of the word in this type of sentence.
• I don't know why we have to learn the absolute form of words, it's so boring.
• In mathematics, the absolute form of a number is its distance from zero on the number line.

noun a morpheme added to a base or stem to modify its meaning

• In linguistics, affixes are morphemes that are attached to a word stem to create a new word.
• Adding affixes to words can change their meaning or grammatical function.
• Some people find it confusing to understand the different types of affixes used in language.
• Just like how affixes can change the meaning of a word, our experiences can affix themselves to our memories.

verb to attach or fasten (something) to something else

• The technician is affixing the label to the specimen for identification purposes.
• I'll be affixing the sticky note to the document so we don't forget.
• He's just affixing some bling to his phone case to make it look cooler.
• She is affixing her signature style to the fashion industry with her latest collection.