Subject–Verb Agreement Rules

Key: subject = yellow, bold; verb = green, underline

Subjects and Verbs must agree in number. In addition to the explanations on this page, also
see the post on Subject—Verb Agreement.

1. If the subject is singular, the verb must be singular too.

Example: She writes every day.

Exception: When using the singular "they," use plural verb forms.
Example: The participant expressed satisfaction with their job. They are currently in a
managerial role at the organization.

2. If the subject is plural, the verb must also be plural.

Example: They write every day.

Sometimes, however, it seems a bit more complicated than this.

3. When the subject of the sentence is composed of two or more nouns or pronouns
connected by and, use a plural verb.

Example: The doctoral student and the committee members write every day.

Example: The percentage of employees who called in sick and the number of
employees who left their jobs within 2 years are reflective of the level of job
satisfaction.

4. When there is one subject and more than one verb, the verbs throughout the
sentence must agree with the subject.

Example: Interviews are one way to collect data and allow researchers to gain an in-
depth understanding of participants.

Example: An assumption is something that is generally accepted as true and is an

important consideration when conducting a doctoral study.
5. When a phrase comes between the subject and the verb, remember that the verb
still agrees with the subject, not the noun or pronoun in the phrase following the
subject of the sentence.

Example: The student, as well as the committee members, is excited.

Example: The student with all the master’s degrees is very motivated.

Example: Strategies that the teacher uses to encourage classroom

participation include using small groups and clarifying expectations.

Example: The focus of the interviews was nine purposively selected participants.

6. When two or more singular nouns or pronouns are connected by "or" or "nor,"
use a singular verb.

Example: The chairperson or the CEO approves the proposal before proceeding.

7. When a compound subject contains both a singular and a plural noun or pronoun
joined by "or" or "nor," the verb should agree with the part of the subject that is
closest to the verb. This is also called the rule of proximity.

Example: The student or the committee members write every day.

Example: The committee members or the student writes every day.

8. The words and phrases "each," "each one," "either," "neither," "everyone,"
"everybody," "anyone," "anybody," "nobody," "somebody," "someone," and "no
one" are singular and require a singular verb.

Example: Each of the participants was willing to be recorded.

Example: Neither alternative hypothesis was accepted.

Example: I will offer a $5 gift card to everybody who participates in the study.

Example: No one was available to meet with me at the preferred times.

9. Noncount nouns take a singular verb.

Example: Education is the key to success.

Example: Diabetes affects many people around the world.

Example: The information obtained from the business owners was relevant to include
in the study.

Example: The research I found on the topic was limited.

10. Some countable nouns in English such as earnings, goods, odds, surroundings,
proceeds, contents, and valuables only have a plural form and take a plural verb.

Example: The earnings for this quarter exceed expectations.

Example: The proceeds from the sale go to support the homeless population in the
city.

Example: Locally produced goods have the advantage of shorter supply chains.

11. In sentences beginning with "there is" or "there are," the subject follows the verb.
Since "there" is not the subject, the verb agrees with what follows the verb.

Example: There is little administrative support.

Example: There are many factors affecting teacher retention.

12. Collective nouns are words that imply more than one person but are considered
singular and take a singular verb. Some examples are "group," "team,"
"committee," "family," and "class."

Example: The group meets every week.

Example: The committee agrees on the quality of the writing.

However, the is used if the focus is on the individuals in the group. This
is much less common.

Example: The committee participate in various volunteer activities in their private lives.
Pronoun Antecedent Agreement Rules
A pronoun is a word that substitutes for a noun. Many pronouns have antecedents, nouns or
pronouns to which they refer.

PERSONAL PRONOUNS

SUBJECT OBJECT POSSESSIVE

SINGULAR I me my
you you your
he/she/it him/her/it his/her/its

PLURAL we us our
you you your
they them their

Rule #1: A pronoun and its antecedent must agree. They should both be singular or both
be plural.

singular Dr. Ellen Wong finished her reports.

plural The doctors finished their reports.

Circle the pronouns and underline their antecedents. Make them agree if necessary.

1. The car would not stop because their brakes failed.

2. The dog barks at the neighbors when he pulls into their driveway.

Rule #2: Even though some indefinite pronouns have plural meanings, treat them as
grammatically singular.

INDEFINITE PRONOUNS (SINGULAR) refer to nonspecific persons or things.

any each everyone none someone

anybody either everything no one something
anyone everybody neither

Incorrect Everyone in my English class does their homework.

Correct singular Everyone in my English class does his or her homework.

Correct plural All of the students in my English class do their homework.

How To Correct Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement Problems

Incorrect When someone has been drinking, they are likely to speed.

1. Replace the plural pronoun with he or she, or it (or his or her or its)
When someone has been drinking, he or she is likely to speed.
 2. Make the antecedent plural.
When drivers have been drinking, they are likely to speed.

3. Rewrite the sentence so that no problem of agreement exists.

A driver who has been drinking is likely to speed.

Circle the pronouns in the following sentences. Decide whether there is a pronoun-
antecedent agreement problem, and correct it if necessary.

1. Everybody is worried about his or her midterms.

2. If anybody comes to Jill�s house on Halloween, she or he will be surprised.

3. If someone reduces the amount of fat in their diet, she or he will lose weight.

Rule #3: Treat generic nouns as singular even though they might have a plural
meaning. Be careful when you use a or any, every, or each.

Incorrect Every boy on the team must try their best if they want their team to win.

Correct Every boy on the team must try his best if he wants his team to win.
The boys on the team must try their best if they want to win.

Incorrect A nursing student must study hard if they want to succeed.

Correct A nursing student must study hard if he or she wants to succeed.

Nursing students must study hard if they want to succeed.

Circle the pronouns in the following sentences. Decide whether there is a pronoun-
antecedent agreement problem, and correct it if necessary.

1. Any child who wants to go on the field trip must bring in a permission slip signed by
their parents.

2. A concert pianist must practice several hours a day. They must sacrifice everything
for their music.

3. A runner must train regularly if they want to run the marathon.

Rule #4: Treat collective nouns as singular unless the meaning is clearly plural.

audience club couple family troop

class committee crowd jury group
 singular The committee granted its permission.
plural The committee put their signatures on the document.

Circle the pronouns in the following sentences. Decide whether there is a pronoun-
antecedent agreement problem, and correct it if necessary.

1. The committee plans to work on their budget next week.

2. The audience clapped its hands.

Rule #5: Treat most compound antecedents connected by and as plural.

Incorrect Joan and Jim moved to the mountains, where he or she built a cabin.
Correct Joan and Jim moved to the mountains, where they built a cabin.

Rule #6: When a compound antecedent is connected by or or nor (or

by either...or or neither...nor), make the pronoun agree with the nearer
antecedent.

Neither the dog nor the cats could find their way through the maze.

Circle the pronouns in the following sentences. Decide whether there is a pronoun-
antecedent agreement problem, and correct it if necessary.

1. Either Jill or Kate will probably get first prize for their essay.

2. Neither the father nor his sons like to get their hair cut short.
6 Rules for Prepositions that Applies Everywhere
There are 6 simple and easy-to-learn rules that will help you ace the grammatical section of
various competitive exams. Here are the 6 rules for prepositions:

• Rule 1- Prepositions must have an object

• Rule 2- Must be placed before
• Rule 3- The Pronoun following the Preposition should be an object form
• Rule 4- Prepositions form
• Rule 5- Do not confuse preposition ‘to’ with infinitive ‘to’
• Rule 6- A Verb cannot be an object of a preposition

Also Read: How to Use the Preposition of To?

How to Use Prepositions in a Sentance?

Examples are a great way to understand the essence of the topic. It helps you understand the
usage, types, and differences. Here is a detailed description of the rules for prepositions with
examples:

Prepositions must have an object

Prepositions must have an object. Without an object, the preposition is merely an adverb. A
preposition always has an object whereas an adverb never has an object. Let’s understand it
better with the help of some examples:

• He is in the kitchen

(The preposition “in” has an object the kitchen)

• Please come in

(It is an adverb, since “in” has no object)

• There was a table before me

(The preposition “before” has to object to me)

• Vicky had never seen it before

(Adverb “before” has no object)

• They will catch up after the movie

(Preposition “after” has an object “movie”)

• Aarav called soon after

(Adverb “after” has no object)

Also Read: Compound Prepositions

Preposition means place before

This rule states that generally, the Preposition comes before its object but not always. A
preposition comes before a noun or a pronoun. Let’s understand this rule for prepositions with
some examples:

• She put the things in the box

(“In” has an object box, and is placed before “box”)

You can not end a sentence with a preposition, which is a prevalent myth of English grammar.
But the truth is you can make a sentence with a preposition. For example:-

• Who did you talk to?

(Preposition “to” related to the pronoun “who”)

A pronoun following the Preposition should be an object form

The noun or pronoun following a preposition forms a prepositional object. If a pronoun is

following a preposition, it should be in the objective form ( me, her, them) and not the subjective
form (I, she, they, etc.). Look at the examples below:

• The gift is from Ravi and Ruchita

• The secret is between me and you

Also, Read about Preposition Over Here!

Prepositions Form

Prepositions particularly have no form. Most of the prepositions are one-word only, but there are
some two to three-word prepositions known as complex prepositions. Let’s take the help of
examples to understand the concept with clarity:

• One-word prepositions like before, on, into

• Complex Prepositions like according to, despite, on account of, but for

Do not confuse the preposition ‘to’ with the infinitive ‘to’

“To” is used as a Preposition (like to me, to India) as well and “to” is an infinitive participle too
(to eat, to dance, to sing, etc.). Be aware and don’t mix the two different things. Here are a few
examples for more clarity:
 To as a Preposition

• I am used to painting
• I look forward to seeing you (Don’t use see you)

To as an Infinitive Participle

• I used to live in America

• They love to sing

Also Read: Articles and Preposition

The verb cannot be an object of a preposition

This is the Golden Rule of Preposition. Sometimes it happens that words that look like verbs are
followed by prepositions “to” but a verb can never be an object of a preposition. Confusing right?
Let’s understand it with an example:

• I like to sing
• These guitars are for singing

In the examples above, “sing” and “singing” are not verbs. In the first example, to sing is part of
the infinitive and it occurs when a verb is used as a noun, adverb, or adjective. Here, to sing is
not an action that is being performed, but what a person likes doing.

In the second example, singing is a ‘gerund’ which is a noun, though it is formed out of a verb.
Her singing is the thing to which the guitars are related. No one in this sentence is singing.

Also Check: Pictures for Preposition

Check Out Other Important Reads on Prepositions

Prepositions Class 8 Exercises 25 Fixed Prepositions List

Prepositions for Class 4 Preposition of Directions
Use of ‘For’ Preposition Use of At, On, In Preposition
Preposition & Prepositional Phrases Prepositions of Place
Time Prepositions Use of Prepositions

Thus, we hope that this blog provides you with a comprehensive guide on Rules for
prepositions. Gearing up for English proficiency exams like IELTS or TOEFL? Sign up for a
demo session with our Leverage Live experts and we will help you plan the right exam strategy
and equip you with the best study materials, resources and mentorship you need to achieve
your target score!
Punctuation in brief
1. Use a comma to create a pause, to separate ideas in that sentence.
2. Use a semi-colon to create a break, but recognises connection of ideas
3. Use a colon to connect two sentences thematically
4. Use a full stop to create the end of that sentence.
5. Use an apostrophe to indicate ownership or missing letters/numbers.

Using commas
Commas are used to break up different parts of a sentence. They allow someone to make

sense of what they are reading. Commas occur where ideas are grouped, to make it easier to
understand these ideas. It may be helpful to think of commas as places where a reader might
draw breath. The comma forms a natural place in a sentence where the reader can pause, to
make sense of an idea. As a comma signifies a pause, it follows natural speech pattern. Here are
some of the ways it can be used.
To separate words in a list:
He lost his house, his heritage, his hair, and his handkerchief.
To separate parts of a sentence:
Firstly, I would like to consider the merits of supplementing the diet with zinc extract.
Secondly, vitamin C can be introduced to combat infection.
Here the comma separates the first word from the body of the sentence, to indicate that this idea
is only the first.
To separate two parts of a linked idea:
After the French Revolution had taken place, many other European countries were
concerned about civil unrest.
Many scientists believe in evolution, although some are trying to disprove Darwin's Theory
of Evolution.
To separate a final phrase, which is an afterthought:
Few people enjoy arduous and demanding exams, especially on Saturdays.
I would like to run the London Marathon, if I were fit.
Using the semi-colon
The semi-colon contains a comma and a full stop. It may be helpful to think of semi-colons

as halfway between the two. They are used in the following ways:
To link sentences that are closely related:
The night sky was the deepest sapphire; Claire realised that she had not observed its
beauty until now.
A full stop between the two sentences would detract from Claire's observation, and a comma
would not make enough of a break to allow the reader to make sense of the two ideas.
To link sentences that are in opposition to each other:
His research methods were fundamentally flawed; nonetheless, he collected the data.
In each of the examples above, the set of words after the semi-colon must be able to stand as a
sentence on its own. However, there is a very common use of the semi-colon where this is not
the case:
To separate items in a list:
Mrs Brown was assisted by other members of staff: Dr Benham from Animal Husbandry;
Mr Gleeson from Botany; and Dr Chalk from Soil Science.
Using the colon
When a colon is used in a sentence, the parts it separates do not need to be complete

sentences in their own right. Colons are used in the following ways:
To introduce a list:
The results of the indoor team games were as follows: Wessex came first, Bridges and
Wantage were joint second, and Sibly came last.

To link two sentences thematically:

Psychological studies into domestic violence are usually centred on an idea of the nuclear
family: Henry Davis decided that he should undertake a more radical approach to research
in this area.
Here the two sentences could exist separately, but by connecting them with a colon the reader is
led from one idea to the next.
To draw out a conclusion:
Language acquisition is a difficult but immensely rewarding task: without it, there is little
hope for global communication.
Here, what is said in the first sentence is contextualised by what is said in the second sentence.
Using apostrophes
The apostrophe has two functions:

1. To show that letters are missing. This is known as contraction.

2. To indicate ownership. This is known as possession.

Contractions
When letters are missing in a word, and the word becomes shorter, the apostrophe is used to
show where the missing letters belonged.
For example:

• I am becomes I'm
• You will becomes you'll
• They would becomes they'd

Contractions are used in informal writing. Essays and reports should not contain informal writing.

Possession
Apostrophes are also used to show that something belongs to something else.
For example:

• The girl's hat - means that the hat is owned by the girl.
• The girl's hats - means that the girl owns more than one hat.
• The girls' hat - means that the girls all share ownership of one hat.
• The girls' hats - means that the girls own several hats (or one each).

As you can see, the apostrophe usually comes before the 's' if the subject is single ('the girl'), and
after the 's' if it is plural ('the girls'). However, it may be different if the word for a single subject
ends with 's' like princess, Venus or Socrates. One useful way to deal with this is to see if the 's'
is pronounced.
For example:

• Venus's arms or the princess's coronet

In both of these examples the 's' is pronounced, so there is an additional 's' with the apostrophe
before.

• Socrates' wife

In this example the 's' is not pronounced, so there is no additional 's' and the apostrophe goes
after the final 's' in Socrates.
Its/it's
The cat licked its paws.
There is no need for an apostrophe, because 'its' is a pronoun in its own right which stands in for
'the cat's' and indicates ownership.
It's an amazing idea.
A missing letter has been replaced by the apostrophe, so it really means 'it is':
Whose/who's
Whose shoes are they?
Here whose is a special kind of pronoun (like its) which indicates ownership already, so there is
no apostrophe.
Who's coming to dinner?
A missing letter has been replaced by the apostrophe, so it really means, 'who is'.

Dates
The 1960s were a period of radical changes in morality.
In the '60s, public morality underwent radical changes.
1960s' morality was quite different to that which had gone before.
- In the first sentence, '1960s' is a plural referring to all the years between 1960 and 1969, so
there is no apostrophe.
- In the second sentence there is a contraction with '19' missed off. The apostrophe replaces the
missing numbers.
- In the third sentence, what is being referred to is the morality of the 1960s, so the apostrophe
indicates possession.
It is worth remembering that words may end with 's' because they are plurals, and not because
they indicate ownership or contraction. Look at what the word is doing and apply an apostrophe
only if appropriate.
Parts of Speech
In linguistics, a part of speech (also called a lexical class, word class, or grammatical category) is
a category of words that have similar grammatical properties. Traditionally, English grammar
divides words into eight parts of speech: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs,
prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. However, some modern grammarians include
additional categories, such as determiners and classifiers.
1. Nouns: A noun is a word that represents a person, place, thing, or idea. Nouns can be
classified into several subcategories, including common nouns (e.g., dog, city), proper
nouns (e.g., Rover, New York), concrete nouns (e.g., table, chair), and abstract nouns
(e.g., happiness, justice).
1. Common Nouns: are general names for people, places, things, or ideas. They do not
refer to a specific person, place, thing, or idea. Examples include “dog,” “city,” “book,”
and “happiness.”

2. Proper Nouns: are specific names for people, places, things, or ideas. They always
begin with a capital letter. Examples include “John,” “Paris,” “The Great Gatsby,” and
“Christmas.”

3. Concrete Nouns: are tangible objects that can be perceived by the senses. They refer
to things that have physical existence. Examples include “table,” “apple,” “car,” and
“mountain.”

4. Abstract Nouns: are intangible concepts or ideas that cannot be perceived through
the senses. They refer to emotions, qualities, states, or actions. Examples include
“love,” “beauty,” “freedom,” and “happiness.”

5. Countable Nouns: can be counted and have singular and plural forms. They can be
preceded by numbers or quantifiers like “a,” “an,” or “many.” Examples include “cat”
(singular) and “cats” (plural).

6. Uncountable Nouns: cannot be counted individually and do not have a plural form.
They usually represent substances, concepts, or qualities that are viewed as a whole.
Examples include “water,” “knowledge,” “furniture,” and “advice.”

7. Collective Nouns: refer to groups of people, animals, or things as a single entity.

Examples include “team,” “herd,” “family,” and “flock.”

8. Compound Nouns: are formed by combining two or more words to create a new noun
with a distinct meaning. They can be written as one word, hyphenated, or separate
words. Examples include “toothbrush,” “mother-in-law,” “firefighter,” and “high school.”

2. Pronouns: A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun in a sentence. Examples
of pronouns include he, she, it, they, we, and you. Pronouns can be classified into several
 subcategories, including personal pronouns (e.g., I, me), possessive pronouns (e.g., mine,
yours), reflexive pronouns (e.g., myself, yourself), and demonstrative pronouns (e.g., this,
that).
1. Personal Pronouns: Personal pronouns are used to replace specific nouns referring
to people, animals, or things. They include pronouns like “I,” “you,” “he,” “she,” “it,” “we,”
and “they.”
2. Demonstrative Pronouns: Demonstrative pronouns are used to point to specific things
or people. Examples include “this,” “that,” “these,” and “those.”
3. Possessive Pronouns: Possessive pronouns show ownership or possession.
Examples include “mine,” “yours,” “his,” “hers,” “ours,” and “theirs.”
4. Reflexive Pronouns: Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject and object of a
sentence refer to the same person or thing. Examples include “myself,” “yourself,”
“himself,” “herself,” “itself,” “ourselves,” and “themselves.”
5. Relative Pronouns: Relative pronouns introduce relative clauses in a sentence and
connect them to independent clauses. Examples include “who,” “whom,” “whose,” “which,”
and “that.”
6. Interrogative Pronouns: Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions. Examples
include “who,” “whom,” “whose,” “which,” and “what.”
7. Indefinite Pronouns: Indefinite pronouns refer to non-specific people or things.
Examples include words like “everyone,” “somebody,” “anyone,” and “nothing.”
8. Reciprocal Pronouns: Reciprocal pronouns are used when two or more subjects are
acting on each other equally. Examples include words like “each other” and “one another.”

3. Verbs: A verb is a word that expresses an action, state, or occurrence. Verbs can be
classified into several subcategories, including transitive verbs (e.g., kick), intransitive
verbs (e.g., sleep), linking verbs (e.g., be), and auxiliary verbs (e.g., have, do).
1. Action Verbs: These verbs express physical or mental actions. For example, “run,”
“eat,” “think,” “write,” etc.
2. Linking Verbs: Linking verbs connect the subject of a sentence to a subject
complement, which describes or renames the subject. Examples include “is,” “am,”
“are,” “was,” “were,” “seem,” “become,” etc.
3. Auxiliary Verbs (Helping Verbs): Auxiliary verbs are used with main verbs to create
different tenses, moods, voices, etc. Examples include “be,” “have,” “do,” “will,” “shall,” etc.
4. Modal Verbs: Modal verbs express necessity, possibility, ability, permission, or
obligation. Examples include “can,” “could,” “may,” “might,” “must,” “shall,” “should,” “will,”
“would.”
5. Transitive Verbs: Transitive verbs require a direct object to complete their meaning.
For example, in the sentence “She ate an apple,” the verb “ate” is transitive as it acts upon
the direct object “apple.”
 6. Intransitive Verbs: Intransitive verbs do not require a direct object to complete their
meaning. For example, in the sentence “He sleeps peacefully,” the verb “sleeps” is
intransitive as it does not act upon any object.
7. Regular Verbs: Regular verbs form their past tense and past participle by adding “-ed”
to the base form (e.g., walk-walked-walked).
8. Irregular Verbs: Irregular verbs do not follow the standard rules for conjugation and
have unique forms for past tense and past participle (e.g., go-went-gone, eat-ate-eaten).
9. Phrasal Verbs: Phrasal verbs consist of a main verb followed by one or more particles
(prepositions or adverbs), which together have a different meaning than the individual
words. Examples include “take off,” “look after,” “give up.”
10. Dynamic Verbs: Dynamic verbs describe actions that can be seen or observed
happening. They denote activities rather than states.
11. Stative Verbs: Stative verbs describe a state or condition rather than an action. They
express thoughts, emotions, senses, possession, etc.

4. Adjectives: An adjective is a word that modifies or describes a noun or pronoun.

Adjectives can provide information about quantity (e.g., three), quality (e.g., beautiful), or
classification (e.g., wooden).
1. Descriptive Adjectives: These adjectives describe the characteristics or qualities of
nouns, such as color, size, shape, etc. For example, “beautiful,” “big,” “round.”
2. Quantitative Adjectives: These adjectives indicate the quantity or amount of a noun.
Examples include “many,” “few,” “several.”
3. Demonstrative Adjectives: These adjectives point out specific nouns and include
words like “this,” “that,” “these,” “those.”
4. Possessive Adjectives: These adjectives show possession or ownership and include
words like “my,” “your,” “his,” “her.”
5. Interrogative Adjectives: These adjectives are used to ask questions about nouns and
include words like “which,” “what,” “whose.”
6. Distributive Adjectives: These adjectives refer to individual members of a group and
include words like “each,” “every,” “either,” “neither.”
7. Proper Adjectives: These adjectives are derived from proper nouns and are
capitalized. For example, “American” from America, or “Shakespearean” from
Shakespeare.
8. Compound Adjectives: These adjectives are made up of two or more words combined
to describe a noun, such as “well-known,” “high-speed.”
9. Comparative and Superlative Adjectives: These adjectives are used to compare two
or more nouns. Comparative adjectives show a comparison between two things (e.g.,
taller), while superlative adjectives show the highest degree (e.g., tallest).
5. Adverbs: An adverb is a word that modifies or describes a verb, adjective, or other
adverb. Adverbs can provide information about manner (e.g., quickly), time (e.g.,
yesterday), place (e.g., here), frequency (e.g., often), degree (e.g., very), or certainty (e.g.,
surely).
1. Adverbs of Manner: These adverbs describe how an action is performed. They often
end in “-ly” and answer the question “how?” For example: quickly, slowly, happily.
2. Adverbs of Time: These adverbs indicate when an action takes place. They answer
the question “when?” Examples include: now, later, yesterday.
3. Adverbs of Place: These adverbs show where an action occurs. They answer the
question “where?” Examples include: here, there, everywhere.
4. Adverbs of Frequency: These adverbs indicate how often an action is performed.
They answer the question “how often?” Examples include: always, never, sometimes.
5. Adverbs of Degree: These adverbs express the intensity or degree of an action or
quality. They answer the question “to what extent?” Examples include: very, too, quite.
6. Interrogative Adverbs: These adverbs are used to ask questions and typically begin
with words like “where,” “when,” “why,” and “how.” Examples include: where, when,
why.
7. Relative Adverbs: These adverbs introduce relative clauses and connect them to
independent clauses. Examples include: where, when, why.
8. Conjunctive Adverbs: These adverbs connect clauses or sentences together and
show relationships between ideas. Examples include: however, therefore, moreover.
9. Adverbs of Purpose: These adverbs explain why something is done or to what end.
Examples include: so, therefore, thus.
10. Adverbs of Certainty: These adverbs express the speaker’s level of certainty about
a statement or action. Examples include: certainly, definitely, probably.

6. Prepositions: A preposition is a word that shows the relationship between a noun or

pronoun and other words in a sentence. Prepositions can indicate location (e.g., in, on,
under), direction (e.g., to, from), time (e.g., before, after), manner (e.g., with, by), or
amount (e.g., of, for).
Locational Prepositions: These prepositions indicate place or location. Examples include:

In: She is in the house.

At: Meet me at the library.
On: The book is on the table.
Over: The plane flew over the mountain.
Under: The cat is under the bed.
Above: The star is above us.
Below: The submarine is below the surface.
Next to: The glass is next to the bottle.
Between: The cookies are between the milk and the juice.
Among: She is among her friends.
Temporal Prepositions: These prepositions indicate time. Examples include:

In: I will finish it in an hour.

At: Meet me at 5 PM.
On: My birthday is on July 10th.
During: I read a book during the flight.
Before: Finish your work before lunch.
After: I will call you after the meeting.
Until: Stay here until I return.
By: You should finish it by Monday.
Since: I have known her since childhood.
For: I have been waiting for hours.
Directional Prepositions: These prepositions indicate movement or direction. Examples
include:

To: Go to the store.

From: I came from school.
With: She left with her friends.
Towards: We are moving towards the goal.
Against: Lean against the wall.
Along: Walk along the road.
Across: Cross the street.
Through: Go through the door.
Out of: Come out of the room.
Into: Go into the house.
Manner Prepositions: These prepositions indicate how something is done. Examples
include:
By: She did it by hand.
With: He wrote with a pen.
 Like: She sings like an angel.
Unlike: Unlike him, she is honest.
Of: He is proud of his work.
About: Talk about your problems.
Beyond: Think beyond the obvious.
According to: According to the rules…
Due to: Due to heavy rain…
Thanks to: Thanks to her help…
Agentive Prepositions: These prepositions indicate who or what is performing an action.
Examples include:
By: The cake was made by my mother.
Through: The message was sent through the mail.
Via: The package was sent via courier.
Without: He can’t do it without help. Accompanied by/accompanied with/in company
with/in the company of : These prepositions are used when we want to say that someone
or something is with another person or thing when an action is taking place or an event is
happening, for example, “She arrived at the party accompanied by her husband.” or “He
was reading a book in the company of his friends.”

7. Conjunctions: A conjunction is a word that connects words, phrases, or clauses in a

sentence. Coordinating conjunctions (e.g., and, but, or) connect items of equal rank;
subordinating conjunctions (e.g., because, since) connect dependent clauses to
independent clauses; and correlative conjunctions (e.g., either…or) link related ideas
together in a sentence.
8. Interjections: An interjection is a word or phrase that expresses strong emotion and is
often set off from the rest of the sentence by punctuation marks such as an exclamation
point or a comma: “Wow! That’s amazing!” or “Oh dear, I made a mistake.”
Some modern grammarians also recognize determiners and classifiers as separate parts of
speech:
1. Determiners: A determiner is a word that specifies the reference of a noun or pronoun in
a sentence by indicating definiteness or quantity: e.g., articles (a/an/the), demonstratives
(this/that/these/those), possessive determiners (my/your/his/her/its/our/their).
2. Classifiers: A classifier is a word that categorizes nouns according to their shape or other
physical properties: e.g., sheet classifiers for flat objects like paper or leaves; container
classifiers for containers like bottles or boxes; and animal classifiers for animals like birds
or fish: “I bought two sheets of paper” or “She drank three cups of tea.”