Language Arts 8th Grade
~What I've Learned This Year~
Chapter 1- The Sentence
Ex.
Sean was chosen captain of his soccer team. (sentence, the understood subject is you)
Was a well-known ragtime pianist. (sentence fragment, the subject who is missing "Who was a well-known ragtime pianist.")
Where are your boots, Kris? (subject, to find the the subject, ask whom or what is doing something or about whom or what something is being said.)
The boy in my class named Joey, arrived late for the dance. (complete subject, The complete subject is Joey)
John was frightened. (simple subject, The simple subject is John)
Emily drove to my house. (predicate, the predicate would be drove)
Marco's brother delivers pizzas. (complete predicate, the complete predicate would be delivers pizzas)
Keshia and Todd worked a jigsaw puzzle. (compound subject, the compound subject is Keshia and Todd.)
The dog barked and growled at the stranger. (compound verb, the compound verb is barked and growled)
Lani wondered why the sky looks blue. (this is a declarative sentence)
Do your homework each night. (this is an imperative sentence)
How was the game? (this is an interrogative sentence)
What a sight the sunset is! (this is an exclamatory sentence)
Chapter 2-Noun,Pronoun,Adjective
The mall was really fun. (noun, mall is the noun)
Hal and Fred went to the beach. (compound noun, the compound noun is Hal and Fred)
The zoo was really fun. (common noun, the common noun is zoo)
The Mall of Acadiana has a lot of clothing stores. (proper noun, the proper noun is Mall of Acadiana)
The hummingbird was drinking from the tree. (concrete noun, the concrete noun is hummingbird)
Love is a thing everyone goes through. (abstract noun, the abstract noun is love)
The audience was pleased with the performance. (collective noun, the collective noun is audience)
She went to the park to pick up Susie. (pronoun, the pronoun is she)
Last spring, I visited my relatives. [personal pronouns (first person), the personal pronoun is I and my.]
Did you say that this pen is yours? [personal pronoun (second person), the personal pronoun is you and yours]
The coach gathered the players around her and gave them a pep talk. [personal pronoun (third person), the personal pronoun is her and them.]
Juan wrote himself a note. (reflexive pronoun, the reflexive pronoun is himself and it is an indirect object)
I myself sold more than fifty tickets. (intensive pronoun, the intensive pronoun is myself)
These are the names of those who volunteered. (demonstrative pronoun, the demonstrative pronoun is these and those)
Who scored the most points in the game? (interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun is who)
Ray Charles is a performer who has had many hit recordings. (relative pronoun, the relative pronoun is who)
Everyone completed the test before the bell rang. (indefinite pronoun, the indefinite pronoun is everyone)
There are many books. (adjective, the adjective is many)
How is a gerbil different from a hamster. (article, the article is a)
Did Jessica win this trophy or that trophy. (demonstrative adjective, the demonstrative adjective is this and that)
They went to the Seattle skyline. (proper adjective, the proper adjective is Seattle)
Chapter 3- Verb, Adverb, Preposition, Conjunction, Interjection
He walked to the store. (verb, the verb is walked)
He has been praised for his fine conducting. (helping verb, the helping verb is has been praised)
Langston Hughes wrote volumes of poetry. (action verb, the action verb is wrote)
Tranh is one of the finalists. (linking verb, the linking verb is "is")
Joel held the baby. (transitive verb, the transitive verb is held)
The Evans twins played quietly indoors the whole day. (intransitive verb, the intransitive verb is played)
They said the forest fire started here. (adverb, the adverb is here)
The package under the tree is mine. (preposition, the preposition is under)
Was it Theo or Tyler? (conjunction, the conjunction is or)
Oh! You surprised me. (interjection, the interjection is Oh!)
Chapter 4- Direct and Indirect Objects, Subject Compliments
Marlene brought sandwiches. (compliment, the compliment is sandwiches)
Has the freeze destroyed some of the crops. (direct object, the direct object is some)
Sarita bought us a chess set. (indirect object, the indirect object is us)
The lemonade taste sour. (subject compliment, the subject compliment is sour)
My aunt's niece is she. (predicate nominative, the predicate nominative is she)
The chili taste spicy. (predicate adjective, the predicate adjective is spicy)
Chapter 5-The Phrase
Monkeys swinging through the dense jungle. (phrase)
The Seine RIver flows through Paris. (prepositional phrase, the prepositional phrase is through Paris)
Mrs. O'Meara is the one on the left. (adjective phrase, the adjective phrase is on the left)
Are you good at soccer. (adverb phrase, the adverb phrase is at soccer)
The smiling child waved. (participle, the participle is smiling)
Then, disgusted with the other duck, it pecked the mirror. (participle phrase, the participle phrase is disgusted with the other duck)
Skiing down that slope was fun. (gerund, the gerund is skiing)
Having a part-time job may interfere with your schoolwork. (gerund phrase, the gerund phrase is having a part-time job)
To install the ceiling fan took two hours. (infinitive, the infinitive is to install)
The crowd grew quiet to hear the speaker. (infinitive phrase, the infinitive phrase is to hear speaker)
The cosmonaut Yuri Gagarian was the first in space. (appositive, the appositive is Yuri Gagarian)
Officer Webb, one of the security guards, caught the burglar. (appositive phrase, the appositive phrase is one of the security guards)
Chapter 6-The Clause
A clause is a word group that contains a verb and its subject and that is used as a sentence or as part of a sentence. An independent clause expresses a complete thought and can stand by itself as a complete sentence. A subordinate clause does not express a complete thought and cannot stand by itself as a complete sentence. An adjective clause is a subordinate clause that modifies a noun or a pronoun. An adverb clause is a subordinate clause that modifies a verb, an adjective, or an adverb. A noun clause is a subordinate clause that is used as a noun.
The sun set an hour ago. (independent clause)
That I wanted. (subordinate clause)
That one, which is my favorite, was bought in Kenya. (adjective clause)
You may sit wherever you wish. (adverb clause)
Chapter 7-Sentence Structure
A simple sentence contains one independent clause and no subordinate clauses. A compound sentence contains two or more independent clauses and no subordinate clauses. A complex sentence contains one independent clause and at least one subordinate clause. A compound-complex sentence contains two or more independent clauses and at least one subordinate clause.
The hairstylist gave Latrice a new look. (simple sentence)
The whistle blew, the drums rolled, and the crowd cheered. (compound sentence)
When I went to the store, I bought some milk. (complex sentence)
When Bill left, he locked the door, but he forgot to turn off the lights. (compound-complex sentence)
Chapter 8-Agreement
When a word takes no indicate whether the word is singular or plural.
When a word refers to one person, place, thing, or idea it is singular in number. When a word refers to more than one person, place, thing, or idea, it is plural in number.
Agreement of Subject and Verb:
A verb should agree in number with its subject.
Singular subjects take singular verbs. (dolphin-eats)
Plural subjects take plural verb. (senators-oppose)
In a verb phrase, the first helping verb agrees in number with the subject.(He is building a bird feeder.)-The singular helping verb is agrees with the plural subject they.
Problems in Agreement:
The number of a subject is not changed by a phrase or clause following the subject. (The distance between the two posts is eight feet.)
Indefinite Pronouns:
The following indefinite pronouns are singular: anybody, anyone, anything, each, either, everybody, everyone, everything, neither, nobody, nothing, no one, one, somebody, someone, and something.
(Everyone was invited to the celebration)
Pronouns like each and one are frequently followed by prepositional phrases. Remember that, for these pronouns, the verb agrees with the subject of the sentence, not with a word in a prepositional phrase.
The following indefinite pronouns are plural: both, few, many, and several.
(Both of the apples are good.)
The indefinite pronouns all, any, more, most, none, and some may be singular or plural, depending on their meaning in a sentence.
Often, the subject in a prepositional phrase that follows the pronoun indicates whether the pronoun is singular or plural. Usually, if the object of the preposition is singular, the pronoun is singular. If the object is plural, the pronoun usually is plural.
Ex.)All of the fruit looks ripe.
Compound Subjects:
Subjects joined by and usually take a plural verb.
Singular subjects joined by or or nor take a singular verb. Plural subjects joined by or or nor take a plural verb.
When a singular subject and a plural subject are joined by or or nor, the verb agrees with the subject nearer the verb.
Ex.)Neither the manager nor the employees want to close the store early.
Other Problems in Agreement:
When the subject follows the verb, find the subject and make sure the verb agrees with it.
Example) Here is my seat-Here are our seats
The contractions don’t and doesn’t should agree with their subjects.
Ex.)These gloves don’t fit.
The word doesn’t is a contraction of does not. Use doesn’t with all singular subjects except the pronouns I and you.
A collective noun may be either singular or plural, depending on its meaning in a sentence.
The singular form of a collective noun names a group of persons, animals, or things.
A collective noun is singular when it refers to the group as a unit.
Plural when it refers to the individual parts or members of the group.
Ex.)The science class are working on their astronomy projects.
An expression of an amount ( a measurement, a percentage, or a fraction, for example) may be singular or plural, depending on how it is used.
An expression of an amount is singular when the amount is thought of as a unit.
Plural when the amount is thought of as separate units.
A fraction or a percentage is singular when it refers to a singular word and plural when it refers to a plural word.
Expressions of measurements ( such as length, weight, and area) are usually singular.
Some nouns that are plural in form take singular verbs.
However some nouns that are plural in form and that name singular subjects take plural verbs.
Even when plural in form, the title of a creative work (such as a book, song, movie, or painting) or the name of a country, city, or organization generally takes singular verb.
A verb agrees with its subject but not necessarily with a predicate nominative.
A pronoun should agree in both number and gender with its antecedent.
Ex.) Brylan lost his book.
Use a singular pronoun to refer to two or more singular antecedents joined by or or nor.
Use plural pronoun to refer to two or more antecedents joined by and.
Some indefinite pronouns are plural, some are singular, and some may be either.
Use a singular pronoun to refer to anybody, anyone, anything, each, either, verybody, everyone, everything, neither, nobody, no one, nothing, one, somebody, someone, and something.
The following indefinite pronouns are plural: both, few, many, and several.
The indefinite pronouns all, any, more, most, none, and some may be singular or plural, depending on their meaning in a sentence.
Either a singular or a plural pronoun may be used to refer to ac collective noun, depending on the meaning of the sentence.
An expression of an amount may take a singular or plural pronoun, depending on how the expression is used.
Some nouns that are plural in form take singular pronouns.
Use a singular pronoun to refer to the title of a creative work (such as a book, song, movie, or painting).
Use a singular pronoun to refer to the name of a country, city, or organization.
Chapter 9-
*A regular verb forms its past and past participle by adding -d or -ed to the base form.
*Irregular verb forms its past and past participle in some other way than by adding -d or -ed to the base form.
*The tense of a verb indicates the time of the action or state of being expressed by the verb.
Ex.)Past, past perfect, present perfect, present, future perfect, and future.
* Do not change needlessly from one tense to another.
* A verb in the active voice expresses an action done by its subject. A verb in the passive voice expresses an action done to its subject
*Sit and set-The verb sit means "to rest in an upright, seated position" or "to be in a place" sit seldom takes an object. The verb set means "to put something in a place.. Set usually takes an object. Notice that set has the same form for the base form for the base form, past, and past participle.
Ex.) Donald Trump had to sit because his back was hurting.
Donald Trump set the coffee on the table.
Chapter 10
* A predicate nominative should be in the nominative case.
* A direct object should be in the objective case.
* An indirect object should be in the objective case.
Ex.) Coach gave them a pep talk.
* An object of a preposition should be in the objective case.
* The personal pronouns in the possessive case- my, mine, your, yours, his, her, hers, its, our, ours, their, theirs.
- The possessive pronouns mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, and theirs are used as parts of a sentence in the same ways in which pronouns in the nominative and the objective cases are used.
- The possessive pronouns my, your, his, her, its, our, and their are used before nouns to show ownership or possession.
* The use of who or whom in a subordinate clause depends on how the pronoun functions in the clause.
* A pronoun used as an appositive is in the same case as the word to which it refers.
Chapter 11
* If a word in the predicate modifies the subject of the verb, use the adjectives. If it modifies the verb, use the adverb form.
*Good is an adjective. It should be used to modify a noun or a pronoun. Use well to modify a verb.
* Good should not be used to modify a verb.
* Well may be used either as an adjective or as an adverb. As an adjective, well has two meanings: "in good health" or "satisfactory".
*The three degrees of comparison are the positive, the comparative, and the superlative.
- Most one syllable modifiers form the comparative degree by adding -er and the superlative degree by adding -est.
- Two syllable modifiers form the comparative degree by adding -er or using more and form the superlative degree by adding -est or using most.
- Modifiers that have three or more syllables form the comparative degree by using more and the superlative degree by using most.