Punctuation Rules

4. Punctuation mistakes: Punctuation errors, too, are very common, especially in the use of semicolons and commas.

Punctuation is a very important aspect of writing; good writing presupposes correct punctuation. Incorrect punctuation is the sign of weak writing, or carelessness. But this sort of thing is eminently avoidable, because punctuation is quite simple to master. Here are some basic rules to keep in mind:

1. Every sentence must end with a full stop.
2. Proper nouns (names of people, places, brands, etc, i.e. unique instances of a class) must always be capitalised.
3. When you use opening quotation marks, do not forget to use closing quotation marks at the end of the quoted word or phrase.
4. Quotation marks are when quoting or sometimes to convey irony, not for emphasis; emphasis is conveyed by emboldening or italicisation, followed by an exclamation mark.
5. Do not use an apostrophe when you are pluralising a word. The plural of toy is toys, not toy’s. Apostrophes are used to form contractions (it is = it’s) and indicate possession.
6. The ellipsis, used to indicate variously the intentional omission of a section of text, an unfinished thought, and a trailing off into silence, consists of only 3 dots. It is pointless to add more dots to an ellipsis. This is excessive punctuation, which is in other words incorrect punctuation.
7. As per the rules of British English, any punctuation mark that is not part of a quoted section of text must be placed outside the quotation marks. However, in the case of direct speech, punctuation marks must be enclosed within the quotation marks.

Grammar Rules

3. Comparison of adjectives: We add ‘er’ to compare short adjectives like pretty and thick; and we add ‘more’ for longer adjectives like handsome and intelligent.

When we want to compare two or more nouns using adjectives, we use the comparative and superlative forms of the adjective to show the comparison between the nouns. E.g. -

Honey is sweet, sugar is sweeter but victory is the sweetest.

In this sentence, we are comparing the three nouns using the positive, comparative and superlative forms of the word ‘sweet’.

Positive Form -

These are the simple adjectives that simply describe the noun without comparing it to another - big, sweet, clean, etc.

She has a big black dog.

He is a sweet boy.

The cupboard is clean.

Comparative Form -

These are used when we are comparing two nouns and need to show which noun possesses the adjective or character in a greater or lesser amount, when compared with the other. - bigger, sweeter, cleaner, etc.

I have a big dog but hers is bigger.

He is sweeter than the other boys.

The cupboard is cleaner than before.

Superlative Form -

This form is used when three or more nouns are being compared and we need to show that one or more of the nouns posses the adjective or characteristic to the highest amount possible. We usually add ‘the’ before the superlative form. - biggest, sweetest, cleanest, etc.

She has the biggest dog in the colony.

He is the sweetest boy in his class.

The cupboard is the cleanest thing in the house.

Making Comparatives and Superlatives

There are certain rules that must be followed in the making of the comparatives and superlatives of the adjectives. Not all adjectives form their comparatives and superlatives in the same way and there are also some irregular adjectives that form completely different comparative and superlative forms.

Single Syllable Words and Double Syllable Words ending with -y, -er, -ow, -le -

We use ‘-er’ to make the comparative and ‘-est’ to make the superlative.

Positive	Comparative	Superlative
Black	Blacker	Blackest
Fair	Fairer	Fairest
Clever	Cleverer	Cleverest

When there is a silent ‘e’ at the end of the positive form, we remove that and add ‘-er’ and ‘-est’

Positive	Comparative	Superlative
Nice	Nicer	Nicest
Late	Later	Latest

When the adjective ends with a ‘y’, we convert the ‘y’ into ‘i’ before adding ‘-er’ and ‘-est’

Positive	Comparative	Superlative
Pretty	Prettier	Prettiest
Lazy	Lazier	Laziest

If the adjective is a small one with little stress on the vowel, we double the last consonant.

Positive	Comparative	Superlative
Hot	Hotter	Hottest
Wet	Wetter	Wettest

Other Words with Two or More Syllables -

For other double syllable words that do not end with -y, -er, -ow, -le, and for adjectives with more than two syllables we use more and most to form the comparatives and superlatives.

Grammar Rules

1. 1.Subject Verb Agreement: Learners often get confused with using the appropriate form of the verb with the subject of the sentence. For example, ‘I live in India’ and ‘He lives in India’ is the correct subject verb agreement of the verb ‘to live’.

2. 2.Possessive Nouns: Non-native speakers of the English are unsure about showing possession while writing or speaking in English. For example, ‘The book belonging to the girl’ can also be referred to as ‘The girl’s book’
Possessive nouns are those nouns that show possession. Possessive Nouns are used to show ownership.
A noun is possessive only when a phrase can be modified to say that an idea or commodity belongs to something or someone. Possessive nouns are an integral part of learning English, use them as often as you can to gain confidence.
Here are some rules to help you use possessive nouns
Rule 1: In singular nouns (person, place, thing or idea), we add apostrophe and ‘s’ after the noun. For example:
Ron’s car is in the garage. (Car belonging to Ron is in the garage)
Note that the possessive noun always comes before what the person or a thing owns or has. In this case, the car belongs to Ron and hence the singular noun ‘Ron’ is placed before ‘car’ that he owns.
Rule 2: In singular nouns ending with ‘s’, we add an apostrophe and ‘s’ to the noun. For example:
Tejas’s notebook is lying on the table. (Notebook of Tejas is lying on the table)
Suhas’s wife is a doctor. (Wife of Suhas is a doctor)

Will other uses

Older textbooks often refer to 'will' as 'the future tense' and this has confused a lot of learners.

It is important to remember that when we talk about the future we cannot always use 'will' and that when we use 'will' we are not always talking about the future.

Here 'will' is clearly referring to the future.

• If I speak to her, I'll tell her about it.
• I'll probably visit Sue when I go to Oxford.
• Next birthday she'll be 32. Or so she says.

In these examples, however, 'will' is referring to events happening at the present.

• The car won't start.
• If that's the phone, I'll get it.
• Will you have another cup of coffee?

When we use 'will' referring to the present, the idea being expressed is usually one of 'showing willingness' or 'will power'.

• My baby won't stop crying. I've tried everything and I'm really exhausted.
• I am the boss. You will do as I say.
• I need quiet to write this but he will keep on talking to me. I wish he would leave me alone.

We use 'will' for requests, orders, invitations and offers.

• Will you give me a hand?
• Will you please take a seat?
• Will you have some cake?
• I'll help you.
  

Present Forms for the Future

We use the present continuous to talk about things that we have already arranged to do in the future.

• I've got my ticket. I'm leaving on Thursday.
• I'm seeing Julie at 5 and then I'm having dinner with Simon.
• He's picking me up at the airport.
• The company is giving everyone a bonus for Christmas.

In many situations when we talk about future plans we can use either the present continuous or the 'going to' future. However, when we use the present continuous, there is more of a suggestion that an arrangement has already been made.

• I'm going to see him./I'm seeing him.
• I'm going to do it./I'm doing it.

We use the present simple to talk about events in the future which are 'timetabled'. We can also use the present continuous to talk about these.

• My plane leaves at 6 in the morning.
• The shop opens at 9.30.
• The sun rises a minute earlier tomorrow.
• My plane is leaving at 8.30.
• The shop is closing at 7.00.
• The sun is rising at 6.32 tomorrow.