PHRASES Definition: Kinds: 1. A group of words that work together. 2. A phrase does not have a subject and verb. 3. Opposite of a clause. 4. Phrases can drop out of the sentence. Appositives Prepositional phrases Verbal phrases Infinitive phrases Gerund phrases Participial phrases Uses: 1. To raise the maturity level of sentences. 2. To beef up writing without adding extra sentences. 3. To power-up writing with graphic meaningful details I. APPOSITIVES: Definition: A word or group of words that renames or explains the noun/pronoun writing right in front of it. They don t have to rename the subject. Examples: a. My friend Anna has a dog. (Anna is the appositive. It explains or renames friend.) b. Pierre, a toy poodle, belongs to her. (a toy poodle, belongs to her. It explains or renames Pierre.) c. Pierre s favorite toy, a big rubber bone, is under the chair. (a big rubber bone, is the appositive. It explains or renames toy.) Exercise: Write the appositive in each of these sentences. 1. Carl s big advantage, his powerful muscles kept him going. 2. The nineteenth constitutional amendment- The amendment allowing women to vote- changed history. 3. Galileo s invention, the telescope, changed scientific method. 4. The bibliography, a list of books used for references, appeared at the end of the report. _ 5. Kareem, the editor of the school newspaper, is also class president. _
II. Prepositional Phrases Definition: 1. A prepositional phases includes the preposition, the object of the position, and any words in between. 2. The first word of a prepositional phrase is ALWAYS a preposition. Examples: a All ninth graders complete the phrase assignment by the deadline. ( by the deadline is the prepositional phrase.) b. The figures on the totem pole have special meaning. c. According to the fire marshal, smoke detectors can save lives. d. After three weeks of heavy rain in April, the Weber River overflowed its banks. COMMONLY USED PREPOSITIONS aboard at down from into prior to about away from due to like regarding above back of during near since according to because of except near to through across before except for next to throughout across from behind for of till after below from off to against beneath from among on together with ahead of beside from behind on account of toward along besides from behind onto under alongside between from under on top of underneath alongside of beyond in opposite until along with but (except) in addition to out up amid by in front of out of upon among by means of in place of outside up to apart from concerning in spite of outside of with around considering inside over within aside from despite inside of over to without as of down instead of past Exercise: Write the prepositional phrases from these sentences. 1. Someday Marcus might work on computers in a bank. 2. During the early 1950 s, the first computers were installed in business firms.
3. Because of the programmer s directions, the computer performs its job without a problem. 4. At the concert, the orchestra played the music by Brahms. 5. Bess plays for the Wilson High School soccer team.
VERBAL PHRASES Definition: A verbal is a word which is made from a verb; it has the power of a verb, but acts as another part of speech. Verbals can be infinitives, gerunds or participles. Verbals can stand alone of begin a phrase III. INFINITIVES: A verb form made up of the word to plus a verb Examples of infinitives standing alone: a. I like to swim. b. The last student to scream was sent away. Examples of infinitive phrases. (An infinitive plus any words that complement or describe it.) c. To scream in class was her secret wish. d. They hoped to catch enough fish for dinner. Exercise A: Write the infinitive phrase. 1. There was plenty of food to eat. 2. Megan planned to invite her friends to a party. 3. To prepare for the final test, Diane reviewed her notes. 4. To learn a new language takes time. 5. Claudia decided to leave the party early. Exercise B: Write the infinitive phrase or prepositional phrase. Do not confuse infinitives with prepositional phrase. An infinitive is to + a verb. A prepositional phrase is to + a noun or pronoun. Label the phrase either infinitive phrase or prepositional phrase. 1. When Ella and Julian go to the lake, they saw other people ready to fish. 2. Do you hope to beat the champion? Ella said to Julian.
3. They said hello to the other boaters. 4. The life guard watched to be sure everyone was safe. 5. Ella and Julian wanted to be home by dark. IV.GERUNDS: A verb form that ends in ing. A gerund is always used as a noun. Examples of gerunds acting alone: a. Smoking rots your lungs. b. You should quit smoking. c. Jody enjoys two things: running and winning. Exercise A: Write the gerunds from the following sentences. 1. Drinking and driving do not mix. _ 2. My favorite sport is swimming. _ 3. Delores thinks fishing is dull. _ Examples of gerunds in phrases: A gerund phrase is a gerund plus any words that complement or describe it. Gerunds phrases are always used as nouns. Riding a bicycle on back roads is great exercise. She has trouble getting to school on time. His greatest goal was catching big fish. Exercise B: Write the gerund phrases from these sentences. 1. Brad watched the running of the Boston marathon on television. 2. One of his dreams was winning that race. 3. When he was very young, he began thinking about entering a marathon some day 4. An architect earns a salary by designing buildings. 5. Finding anything in that messy room must be hard. 6. Knowing you has been my pleasure. 7. Some people enjoy weeding their gardens.
Exercise C Confusing gerunds and verbs: Write the gerund phrase from these sentences. 1. My favorite activity is playing the trumpet. 2. Fishing for trout is his favorite sport. 3. Jody likes running every day. 4. We are planning a vacation to Disneyland. 5. Trying to finish 800 pages ahead of schedule was her goal. 6. She is trying to finish 800 pages ahead of schedule. V. PARTICILES: A participle is a verb form ending in ing, or past tense like ed. en, n, or t. A participle is used as an adjective. Examples of single word participles: a. The running deer was beautiful. b. He picked up the pieces of broken glass. Exercise A: Write single word participles from these sentences. 1. The setting sun turned the sky red and purple. 2. Those cooked carrots are mushy. 3. Will you help that lost child find her mother? 4. My rumbling stomach told me I was hungry. 5. The cracked glass hid the details of the painting. 6. Steamed vegetables are good for you. 7. The hikers climbed over the fallen log. 8. What a frightening movie that was. Participial Phrases: A participial phrase is a participle plus any words that complement or describe it. A participle comes right before or right after the noun or pronoun it describes. Examples of participial phrases: a. Running at full speed, Joanne caught the bus. b. The deer running through the woods was beautiful.
Exercise B: Write the participial phrases from these sentences. 1. Howling wildly, the wind frightened the child. 2. Dana lent her book to the girl sitting in the first row. 3. Expecting the worst, Ann was pleasantly surprised with her grade. 4. The keys locked inside the car were of little use. 5. Concentrating on her notes, Mrs. Zeeman did not hear Julie enter the room 6. Mrs. Simons has mailed the letter addressed to the bank. 7. Recommended by his teachers, James was given the award. 8. Dinner cooked by her sons was a special treat for Mrs. Olmstead. Exercise C: Confusing Participles and Verbs: Write on your paper the words that are participles used as adjectives. 1. Your cold is probably catching. 2. We will be catching the train. 3. The newly painted room was bright and cheery 4. They have painted the room a bright yellow. 5. The wind was howling all night 6. The howling wind kept us awake al night.