Grammar Fundamentals
Basic Grammar Terminology
Understanding the basic components of a sentence is the first step to mastering English grammar. This guide provides a quick reference to the fundamental building blocks of the language.
A-1: Subjects, Verbs, and Objects
Almost all English sentences contain a subject (S) and a verb (V). The subject is the person or thing that performs the action. The verb is the action or state of being.
Birds
fly
The baby
cried
Transitive and Intransitive Verbs
Verbs can be classified as transitive or intransitive.
- Intransitive Verbs: These verbs are not followed by an object. The action is complete on its own.
- Transitive Verbs: These verbs are followed by an object (O), which is the noun that receives the action of the verb.
Intransitive Example (S + V):
A student
studies
Transitive Example (S + V + O):
A student
studies
books
Common Intransitive Verbs
| agree | We agree. |
| arrive | The train arrived. |
| come | Please come in. |
| cry | The baby cried. |
| exist | Dinosaurs existed. |
| go | She will go. |
| happen | An accident happened. |
| live | They live in the city. |
| occur | A change occurred. |
| rain | It rained yesterday. |
| rise | The sun rises. |
| sleep | He is sleeping. |
| stay | Please stay here. |
Common Transitive Verbs
| build | They will build a house. |
| cut | She cut the paper. |
| find | I will find the keys. |
| like | We like pizza. |
| make | He made a cake. |
| need | I need some help. |
| send | Please send an email. |
| use | Can I use your phone? |
| want | They want a new car. |
A-2: Adjectives
Adjectives describe or modify nouns. They provide more information about the noun, answering questions like "What kind?" or "Which one?".
Adjective before a noun:
intelligent
student
Adjective after the verb 'to be':
student
intelligent
Remember: Adjectives are never plural. You never add a final -s to an adjective: beautiful pictures (not beautifuls pictures).
A-3: Adverbs
Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. They often answer questions like "How?", "When?", or "Where?". Many adverbs are formed by adding -ly to an adjective (e.g., quick → quickly).
Adverb modifying a verb:
walks
quickly
Mid-Sentence Adverbs
A common group of adverbs, often related to frequency, typically appears in the middle of a sentence. Their position depends on the verb: they come after the verb be, but before other main verbs.
| always | She is always on time. She always comes on time. |
| usually | He is usually busy. He usually works late. |
| often | We are often tired. We often go to the movies. |
| frequently | It is frequently cold. It frequently rains here. |
| generally | They are generally happy. They generally eat at home. |
| occasionally | I am occasionally late. I occasionally read books. |
| seldom | He is seldom angry. He seldom travels. |
| hardly ever | You are hardly ever wrong. You hardly ever call. |
| never | I am never sad. I never eat meat. |
A-4: Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases
A preposition is a word that shows a relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and another word in the sentence. A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition and its object (a noun or pronoun).
The student
studies
in the library
Breakdown of a Prepositional Phrase:
in
the library
When a sentence has prepositional phrases of both place and time, the phrase of place comes before the phrase of time.
We went to the zoo (place) in the afternoon (time).
Common Prepositions
| about | beyond | on |
| above | by | out |
| across | despite | over |
| after | during | since |
| along | for | through |
| around | from | to |
| at | in | under |
| behind | into | until |
| below | like | up |
| beside | near | with |
| besides | of | without |
| between | off |