GLOSSARY

GLOSSARY:

Parts of Speech:

1. Noun: thing (rock), idea (anthropocentrism), person (Julie), place (Ketchum)

2. Verb: expresses action or state of being (walk, run, hide)

3. Adverb: answers the questions when, how, why, where. Usually ends in ly (momentarily, expeditiously)

4. Adjective: a word or phrase that describes an attribute of a noun (significant, wild, impressive)

5. Pronoun: replaces a noun. (I, it, them, he she, they, one, we, us...)

6. Preposition: expresses a relationship (in, on, under, at, to, with, between, among, above).

Objects of prepositions cannot be the subjects of sentences. (The cutthroat with two hooks in its mouth must have been hungry). “Cutthroat” is the subject of the sentence because the plural “two hooks” is object of the preposition “with.”

7. Conjunction: connectors between sentences or items(FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so)

8. Interjection: an exclamation (Ah! Oh! Yo! Hey! Argh!)

9. Participle: a verb that functions as an adjective. There are present (scolding) and past participles (exhausted). Participial phrases modify the noun after the phrase: “Walking down the streets of Ketchum in the early morning, I saw a bear.”

10 Antecedent: the person, place, or thing that a pronoun refers to.

(Julie is athletically inclined; she is an Olympic hopeful in skiing.)-she is the pronoun and Julie is the antecedent.

Definition of Key terms:

11. Clause: any group of words with a subject and a verb

(your skis are not waxed)-independent clause (sentence)

(who lifts off the 90 meter at terminal velocity)-dependent clause

12. Phrase: any group of words without a subject and a verb

(in a spandex suit)-prepositional phrase

(Surrounded by fans)-past participial phrase

(Clearing the cornice)-present participial phrase

13. Subordinate / Dependent clause: contains a subject (or implied subject) and a verb but it cannot stand alone as a sentence; it is dependent on the rest of the sentence to become a complete, grammatically correct sentence.

(because Gillian did not do her homework)

(who left for the Junior Olympics)

(which settles at the bottom)

14. Independent clause: contains a subject and a verb and can stand alone as a sentence. A semicolon joins two independent clauses.

Idaho has the largest roadless area in the lower 48 states.

Community School students are bright, athletic, and friendly.

You are brilliant.

Deal. -the implied subject is you.

15. Parenthetic expression: a phrase that interrupts the flow of the sentence and can be omitted without damaging the grammatical structure of the sentence. But whether the interruption is slight or considerable, you must never omit one comma and leave the other.

(The best way to see a country, unless you are pressed for time, is to travel on foot.)

16. Restrictive clauses: a clause that limits, defines, or identifies its antecedent in such a way that its omission would prevent the sentence from achieving its intended meaning.

(People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.)

If you take the restrictive clause who live in glass houses out of the sentence, it will read, “People should not throw stones.” Clearly this is not the intended meaning.

17. Nonrestrictive clauses: a clause that does not limit, define, or identify its antecedent in such away that its omission would prevent the sentence from making sense. Therefore, nonrestrictive clauses need commas for they could be omitted.

(Marjorie’s husband, who is Colonel Nelson of the 103rd infantry, paid us a visit yesterday.)

If you take the nonrestrictive clause who is Colonel Nelson of the 103rd infantry out of the sentence, it will read, “Marjorie’s husband paid us a visit yesterday.” This still maintains the intended meaning of the sentence.

18. Appositives: a word or phrase that modifies a noun by restating or expanding its meaning. They can be offset by dashes or commas.

(Richard Wilbur, former poet laureate, studied under Robert Frost.)

(Around the third turn, my skis made a haunting noise-a chattering, piercing sound of metal on ice.)

19. Run-on: a sentence in which two independent clauses or sentences are joined without appropriate punctuation or conjunctions. They are also known as fused sentences.

Run-on:

(The Community School soccer team had the most talented group of players in years they never doubted that they would win the state soccer tournament.)

Run-on Corrected:

(The Community School soccer team had the most talented group of players in years; they never doubted that they would win the state soccer tournament.)

20. Parallel structure: a sentence pattern in which related words, clauses, or phrases follow similar patterns. The shared pattern is a requirement and is usually established by the first two words, clauses, or phrases in series of three words, clauses or phrases. The shared pattern reinforces the notion that these ideas are related.

(The skier was turning in the air, smiling at the camera and watching for the ground at the same time.)

21. Topic Sentence: Usually, the first sentence in a body paragraph. It must have a subject and an opinion that will organize the paragraph. It has the same organizational force for the paragraph that the thesis has for the whole essay. Also, it must correspond with one of the topics developed in the three pronged plan of attack (see Rule #25) stated in the introductory paragraph. The topic sentence connects to the thesis and explores the first prong of the three-pronged attack.

22. Transitional Topic Sentence: a topic sentence that summarizes the topic of the previous paragraph in an introductory phrase or subordinate clause and highlights the topic of the current paragraph in the independent clause. Summarize the topic of previous paragraph with a “Because...” “As...” or “Similar to...” introductory phrase / clause and then state the topic of the paragraph in the main independent clause.

23. Active voice occurs when the subject of the sentence actually performs the action described by the verb.

(Active): “I shall always remember my first visit to Boston.”

24. Passive voice occurs when the action described by the verb is done to the subject.

(Passive): “My first visit to Boston will always be remembered by me.”

25. Simple sentence: a sentence that has only on independent clause:

independent clause

Scouts are coming to the soccer game on Saturday.

26. Compound sentence: a sentence that combines two or more independent clauses by a coordinating conjunction (F.A.N.B.O.Y.S.: for, and, nor, but, yet, so) or a semicolon:

1st independent clause 2nd independent clause

(Scouts are coming to the soccer game on Saturday, and several colleges will be represented by these scouts at the game.)

27. Complex sentence: a sentence that combines an independent clause and one or more dependent or subordinate clauses:

dependent clause

(When Sean heard that college scouts were coming to the soccer game on Saturday, he became nervous.)

independent clause

28. Compound complex: a sentence that combines two or more independent clauses and at least one dependent or subordinate clauses:

dependent clause

(Although many of the college scouts are coming from hundreds of miles away, they are excited about the soccer game on Saturday, for it will allow them to take a good look at the high school talent.

2nd independent clause

29. Telling: Generalizing about an experience in abstract language without providing examples or details to illuminate the general statements.

telling:

“It was so cold in the early morning air that everything seemed to be dying.”

30. Showing: Using specific examples and sensory details to expand and clarify general statements.

“From the first moment that I got outside, I felt chilled to the very marrow. It was one of those nights on which the earth seems dead with cold. The frozen air becomes resisting and palpable, such pain does it cause; no breath of wind moves it, it is fixed and motionless; it bites you, pierces through you, kills the trees, the plants, the insects, the small birds themselves, who fall from the branches on to the hard ground, and become stiff themselves under the grip of the cold.”

31. Block Quote: a quotation that is more then three sentences or three lines of poetry. It introduced by a colon and is tabbed to the middle of the essay; the left side column is justified, or aligned and the right hand column is not.

Example: Where far in a forest I am laid

In a placed ringed round by stones

Look not for melancholy shade

And have no thoughts of buried bones.

(lines 1-4).

32. Embedded Quote: a quotation that is three sentences or three lines of poetry or less. It is introduced by a comma and kept within the text of the essay.

Example:

Describing the New Hampshire woods in winter, Robert Frost ‘s speaker states, “When I see birches swing from left to right / Across the lines of straighter, darker trees / I like to think some boy’s been swinging them.” (lines 1-3).