English grammar explained in plain language simple enough to be understood.
Today we will work again with complex sentences. The words since, because, and if are all subordinate clause words. Anytime we use a subordinate clause word, we are writing a complex sentence. When we begin with a subordinate clause word,… Read more227. More Rearranging of Complex Sentences
A clause is a group of words that includes a verb. A subordinate clause begins with a subordinating conjunction. Here are some subordinating conjunctions: if, when, since, because, while When you begin a sentence with one of these words, your… Read more398. Use a Comma with a Subordinate Clause
We put quotation marks around the title of a short story, a magazine article, and a poem. The quotation marks help to identify the words as part of a title. Here are some examples:“All in a Summer Day” – a… Read more418. Quotation Marks Around a Title
If you begin a sentence with a speech tag, put a comma after the speech tag and before the first quotation mark. Put the end punctuation – the period – inside the last quotation mark. Dad said, “Please put the… Read more419. Quotation Marks and End Punctuation
Section A: Which words in each sentence can be placed inside a set of parentheses?1. My dad the funniest guy in the world is always telling jokes. 2. I’m ready as ready as I’ll ever be to take the next… Read more420. Practice with Parentheses and Quotation Marks
We use an apostrophe (‘) to show that a noun owns something. We call it “having possession.” Bob owns a car. The car is Bob’s car. We attach an apostrophe to the noun Bob to show his ownership of the… Read more488. Common Mistakes: Possessive Nouns
When we put two simple sentences together, we form a compound sentence. We use a coordinating conjunction along with a comma to join two simple sentences. The word conjunction means “to join.” There are seven coordinating conjunctions. If we list… Read more531. Two Simple Sentences Make a Compound Sentence
A compound sentence is formed by joining two simple sentences together. Each independent clause is a simple sentence, We join the two simple sentences with a comma and a coordinating conjunction. There are seven coordinating conjunctions: for, and, nor, but,… Read more533. Always Use a Comma in a Compound Sentence
We have been talking about coordinating conjunctions and subordinating conjunctions. A coordinating conjunction is one of the FANBOYS and is used to connect two independent clauses. A subordinating conjunction is used to connect a subordinate clause with an independent clause…. Read more543. Comma Confusion
We use a comma to set off certain words. When writing a letter, we begin by greeting the person to whom we are writing. Always put a comma after the words of the greeting. A greeting looks like this:Dear Mom,Dear… Read more621. Comma Rules – Greeting and Closing in a Letter