COMMUNICATION 1 GUIDE Part 1 _incomplete

Module Syllabus
1. COMMUNICATION THEORY
1.1 Models of Communication
1.2 Communication Barriers
1.3 Verbal and nonverbal communication
1.4 Communication contexts

2. SPEAKING AND LISTENING

2.1 Interviews – slides provided
2.2 Telephone skills – slides provided
2.3 Persuasive speech – slides provided

3. READING COMPREHENSION
3.1

4. WRITING SKILLS
4.1

5. LANGUAGE USE
5.1 Tenses (time)
5.2 Concord (Agreement)
5.3 Prepositions
5.4 Parts of Speech

UNIT 1: COMMUNICATION THEORY

Outcomes
At the end of the unit, students should be able to:
 Describe the interpersonal communication process with the aid of a model.
 Identify the different elements in the communication process.
 Identify the different purposes of business communication.
 Understand the different contexts in which communication occurs.
 Identify possible barriers to communication.
 Understand how verbal symbols are used to communicate meaning.
 Understand how nonverbal symbols are used to communicate meaning.

1. Communication definition

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• The word “communication” comes from the Latin word “Communicare” which
means to share − to share information and ideas between a sender and a receiver.
• Communication is the practical process of creating meaning between two or more
people through the expression and interpretation of messages.
• However, when we study communication, we examine it theoretically.

1.1 Models of communication

• Models of communication are illustrations or construction intended to help us to
understand the elements and interactions in the communication process.
Communication theorists have developed numerous models based on various theories
of communication. Most of these models share certain essential elements but differ in
terms of how the elements interact. Some represent communication in a linear way
(one-way, a transaction from A to B) while others are cyclical way - focusing on
communication as a transaction or two-way process, which is a dynamic and on-going
interaction.

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 1.2 ELEMENTS IN THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS

 Sender is the person who initiates the communication by having, for example, an
idea, a thought or information to communicate to the audience. The sender is
sometimes referred to as the source, the communicator or the encoder. The primary
responsibility for the success of any communication lies with the sender.
 Encoding is the act of making an idea accessible to others, of putting an idea into a
code so that it becomes perceptible to the receiver. This can be done using a verbal
code- language, whether spoken or written- or a non-verbal code- a code without
words or language.
 Code is set of symbols which, when combined and used according to the rules agreed
upon by users, conveys meaning. The most commonly used code in the business and
technical world is language. The set of symbols used in language is the alphabet.
When using a code to convey meaning, it is essential that communicators follow the
rules or principles governing the code. Language is not the only code we use to
communicate. The clothes we wear, and how we wear them, also convey meaning.
 Message is the meaning, content or subject matter- that is, the encoded idea or content
that the sender wishes to convey.

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  Medium is the means or a vehicle that carries or transports the message to the
audience.
Examples of mediums commonly used in business and professional communication
include the telephone, email, meetings, letters and memos, interviews and
conversations.
The choice of medium depends on a number of factors, including:
proximity/geographical distance; the nature and complexity of the message; feedback
requirements; and, time and cost.
 Audience or receiver is the person to whom the sender directs the message and who
thus has to understand the message.
 Decoding refers to the process of an audience receiving, interpreting and
understanding an encoded message to ensure that there is shared meaning and
communication.
 Feedback is the audience’s response to the message. Feedback is essential for
effective communication, because it provides for a two-way flow of messages.
 Communication environment is the physical, social and emotional situation in
which the communication takes place. Noise in the next-door room, for example,
hampers communication, while a friendly atmosphere facilitates communication.

COMMUNICATION BARRIERS

 A communication barrier is defined as any factor that hampers or prevents the

smooth flow of the message from the sender to the audience and can result in
misunderstandings.
Five categories of barriers are identified:
- Perceptual barriers refer to the way of interpreting information or giving meaning
to or seeing the world around you according to your experience and background.
-Language barriers are due to different language understanding and use of words.
-Physical barriers are factors or elements in the external environment that hamper
communication, such as noise, unclear link or sound.
-Physiological barriers are experienced internally; in other words, within the body of
the sender or audience, such as headache, hunger or sleepiness which makes it
difficult to concentrate.
-Psychological barriers are experienced in the mind, such as, boredom, stress,
embarrassment or bad attitude to the message or speaker.

Essentials
• Timing : the time should be right or suitable
• Place: the environment should be comfortable
• Structure of the message: the message should be well-organised or well
presented
• Medium: the means of conveying the message should well thought out for its
suitability

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Purpose and audience
Communication in the business world is always purposeful. An awareness of purpose helps a
communicator to tailor a message- especially a written one- to meet this purpose. Purpose can
be classified as:

• General: to inform, to persuade, and to entertain

• Specific: to report on a survey, an interview, etc.

Cross-cultural variations
Culture is a complex concept. In simple terms it can be defined as a way of life of a particular
group of people. It involves the following elements that may vary across cultures:
• Language
• Religion and beliefs
• Values and attitudes
• Politics and law
• Technology
• Social organisation

Language
Language is a system of words and sounds used to communicate ideas. It uses certain agreed
upon words or symbols to evoke meaning. Language is associated with people and its use
reflects their personality and thinking.

Communication Skills (required skills)

The four major communicative skills:
• Listening (L
• Speaking (S)
• Reading (R)
• Writing (W)

Modes of communication
The following four pairs of concepts are known as Modes/Types or “dimensions of
communication”:

1. Formal and Informal communication

In formal communication we pay more attention to what we are saying. This communication
is also controlled by certain situational conventions and rules. On the other hand, informal
communication is more relaxed as there are no hard and fast rules. It also depends on the
situation. The form of language used is colloquial.

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 2. Oral communication and written communication

Oral communication refers to messages that are transmitted aloud; it involves speaking and
listening. Examples: a conversation with friends, watching a programme on television,
listening to some music on the radio, attending a lecture, or telephoning a friend. Oral
messages generally involve verbal and non-verbal messages. By contrast, written
communication takes place mostly through written words. It also sometimes has a non-verbal
dimension, such as when advertisements use graphics to enhance the oral message.

3. Internal and external communication

Internal organisational communication may be defined as all kinds of interaction that take
place between members of the same business by means of formal and informal
communication channels (notice boards, memoranda, emails). External communication
involves interactions with people outside the organisation (letters, emails, calls).

4. Verbal communication and non-verbal communication

Verbal communication refers to the spoken or written signs called words which make up a
particular language, while non-verbal communication refers to all human communication that
does not use spoken or written signs, such as a smile or a nod of the head.

Verbal and non-verbal

Verbal:
- Oral/spoken words
- Written words

Non-verbal:
- No words
- Body movements
- Space
- Voice
- Graphics/pictures/signs

NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION
 As discussed earlier, it is possible that communication breakdown takes place.
 This is due to different people interpreting the same message differently.
 In order that verbal/ spoken communication makes more meaning, communicators
sometimes make use of non-verbal communication.

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Characteristics of non-verbal communication
 Non-verbal codes such as symbols or signs are used. For instance, the road signs:
green means go/ right of way; amber means caution, and red is a symbol of danger.
 This is an ‘older’ code of communication. Symbols evolve with time – as the world
around keeps changing, especially in response to technological inventions.
 Because non-verbal communication relies on the use of socially defined symbols, it is
symbolic. For instance, a smile may symbolise joy, happiness, or pleasure. However,
it may also symbolise hidden irritation.
 This form of communication is also spontaneous as it displays the sender’s inner
emotions.
 Non-verbal communication is usually not universal. For instance, while in many
African countries wearing black clothes during a funeral may symbolise mourning,
Chinese wear white to mourn the passing away of a close relative.
 In a case where non-verbal communication is not clear, it is best to seek clarity from
the sender of the message.
 Since the use of non-verbal communication is culturally determined, it is crucial that
communicators become sensitive towards other people’s cultures.
 The following are factors need to be understood regarding non-verbal communication:

 Proxemics
o Proxemics refers to the use of space during communication.
o An example would be a fence around a house to symbolise that it is
private property.
o Personal space is also an integral part of proxemics. This refers to an
imaginary bubble of space around a person. For instance, some people
get offended if someone gets too close to them during a conversation;
they feel their personal space is disrespected.
o Personal space varies from culture to culture; therefore, you need to
know your audience well.
o Entering someone’s office without knocking or asking for permission
is another example of interfering with someone’s personal space.

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 Clothing and personal adornment
o Clothing and social adornment play an important role in
communication. For instance, you can tell from the clothes people
wear if they are supporters of a particular football team and political
party, amongst others.
o Different cultures interpret clothing and personal adornment
differently.
o It is therefore important that communicators are aware of their
audience’s cultural interpretations of clothing for effective
communication.
 Gaze
o Eyesight is crucial in communication.
o A gaze refers to a look or a stare and thus important in communication
as eyes reveal or communicate about an individual.
o The use of gaze differs from culture to culture. For instance, while
African and Asian cultures downcast eyes may be considered a sign of
respect, the opposite can be said about the Western cultures.

 Facial expression
o There are six emotions that can be communicated through facial
expressions. These emotions are: joy, sadness, fear, surprise, anger and
disgust.

 Kinesics
o Kinesics is the study of body movement. These body movements
include gestures, posture as well as head, trunk and limb movements.
o A range of meanings maybe conveyed through gestures. For instance, a
child rolling her eyes when a mother is talking is interpreted to mean
the child is rude or uninterested.
o Communicators can use moderate gestures as excessive use of gestures
can be a barrier to effective communication. For instance, a speaker
who keeps walking up and down during an oral presentation may

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 distract the audience’s attention as the audience make focus on the
speaker’s movement as opposed to the speech.

 Voice
o The voice conveys meaning and therefore, is should not be confused
with the words.
o Good communicator should therefore pay attention to the following
vocal qualities:
 Pitch: the voice must be clear.
 Inflection: words to be articulated/ pronounced clearly.
 Tone: the sounding of the voice should not be monotone.
 Projection: the voice should be heard by the audience.
 Pace: the sender/ speaker should neither be too fast nor too
slow.

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COMMUNICATION CONTEXTS

Intrapersonal Communication

Interpersonal Communication

Organisational Communication

Outcomes
At the end of the unit, students should be able to:
 Compare and contrast various communication flows within organizations;
 Appraise advantages and disadvantages of different communication flows in
organizational contexts.

What is organizational communication?

Organizational communication is viewed as a set of phenomena that occurs within the
organization. For an organization to carry out its business, different role players need to
interact at different levels. When two or more individuals get involved into conflict at work,
the organizational process of communication must ensue. Beside conflict resolution, all
operations in an organization rely on effective communication.
 When an individual is making a PowerPoint presentation before the colleagues,
supervisors and the managers, they are getting involved in organizational
communication.
 When employees come to work and get involved in the performance of their job /
duties, then they may interact face to face with the supervisors, managers, colleagues -
and attend phone calls, send emails, etc.
 All these are forms of organizational communication which need to be carried out in a
smooth manner for the effective functioning of the organization (Kapur, 2018).

Communicational Flow within an Organization

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According to Turkalj and Fosic (n.d), as cited by Kapur (2018), the communicational flow
within the organization can develop into many different directions. These have been stated
below:

Upward Communication (Vertical)

This communication goes up in the official hierarchy, from the lower to the higher level. The
subordinates communicate with the superiors regarding various concerns and issues, such as,
sending information regarding their performance, any problems with the materials, equipment
and the working conditions are reported to the superiors, the opinion of the employees
regarding some issue, and grievances of the employees. The major weakness in this type of
communication is message filtering. This communication may take place in an oral form or
written form.
Downward Communication (Vertical)
This information flows from the higher to the lower levels in the official hierarchy. It is a
distinguishing feature for providing ideas, suggestions and orders, augmentation of notions
and communicational knowledge. This process is time consuming, but its greatest problem is
the damage or contradicting of information on the path through the chain of command. Quite
often there is misinterpretation of the directions and employees are not able to follow the
guidance or properly understand the information, therefore, it is vital to establish a backward
link to check the transmission of appropriate and complete information.
Sideward Communication (Horizontal)
This type of communication takes place amongst the individuals of the same positions and
levels. When employees are not able to understand their supervisors, normally they
communicate with their colleagues to acquire information. This can take place either within
the department or between different working groups. The co-workers normally get engaged
into sideward communication regarding their job duties or in seeking any kind of help.

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How communication flows in an organisation

Communication flows in a number of ways within an organisation, viz:

Horizontally, vertically, diagonally, and through the grapevine.

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Advantages

Maintains order & a good chain of command;

Keeps respect/honour for authority; and
Enhances the safety of the management and their premises.

Disadvantages

Distortion/Filtering:
Filtering occurs when, for example, an employee passes a message intended for upper level
management through an immediate supervisor. The employee's immediate supervisor may
change the information in the message to reflect the supervisor's opinion or understanding of
the situation. The change in the message could be deliberate or unintentional. Either way, the
intended recipient of the message may not receive the intended message sent by the original
sender.

Delay:
Sometimes, front line employees hesitate to let managers know of a problem because doing
so means acceptance of failure. Hence, delays may take place to decide whether to inform top
management or to try to solve the problem themselves.

Gatekeeping: gatekeeping of any nature may occur when one of the role players in the
communication line is trying to control who gets access higher structures, resources, power,
or opportunities.

Reluctance:
In some cases, employees are reluctant to provide information through upward channels
because they fear retaliation. If employees feel that their messages are viewed as complaints,
they may feel that management will find a way to terminate them. (This also applies to the
person through whom the message ought to be sent - they may be reluctant to pass the
message on; they may ignore it).

Confidentiality: Messages intended for the superior authorities get to be known by the
subordinates.

Creates or perpetuates inferiority complex:

The upward communication mostly favours the superiors, so the employees tend to doubt
their position thinking they are not too worthy to talk to the boss even if they have new ideas
and suggestions.

Indiscipline/Bypassing:
We get people who do not like authority and so they communicate directly with the boss (this
is mostly people who hold much higher positions in an organisation than that of a secretary).

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Negligence: a message may not reach the intended receiver due to the messenger's
negligence/forgetfulness.

Advantages Disadvantages

Reaching a final solution is relatively easier When there’s a deadlock, no one can come
and faster; with a solution since the communicants are
Hard-working & trusted teams are easily at the same level (of knowledge);
formed/identified; Differing strong personalities might clash
No superiority/inferiority complex - since no one is the boss.
members are peers/equals.

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Advantages Disadvantages

Do not ignore information received through It reveals some degree of error;

the grapevine. It can be harmful if the passed information
Use this channel to supplement the formal is baseless;
channel. It leads to misunderstandings because of
Identify but do not threaten the main sources incomplete information;
of information. It may cause damage to the organisation
Try to understand the human relationships because of its excessive swiftness.
involved in grapevine.
It may lead to free publicity (uninvited & free
attention) if rumours turn out to be untrue.
It is the quickest/cheapest/inexpensive way of
disseminating information.
It promotes solidarity & unity in an
organisation.
Treat any information obtained from the
grapevine with caution.
No gatekeeping.
Information from the grapevine can inform
the management about some of the
grievances/needs of the employees.
It may be an outlet for emotional pain (e.g.
frustration, anger, etc)

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Each of these means through which information can be disseminated in an organisation has
its pros and cons. Below, are some of the Q & A’s regarding the pros and cons of some of the
means by which communication flows in an organisation.

Q. Discuss the advantages of 'horizontal communication' as one of the means by which

communication flows in an organisation.
A. Reaching a final solution is relatively easier and faster
Hard-working & trusted teams are easily formed/identified
No superiority/inferiority complex - members are peers/equals.

Q. Discuss the advantages of 'upward/downward vertical communication' as one of the means

by which communication flows in an organisation.
A. Maintains order & a good chain of command
Keeps respect/honour for authority
Enhances the safety of the management and their premises.

Q. Study the visuals below and discuss the disadvantages of vertical flow as a means by
which communication flows in an organisation.

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Q. Discuss the disadvantages of grapevine communication in an organisation.
A. There's always some degree of error.
➔ Can be harmful if the passed information is baseless
➔ Leads to misunderstandings because of incomplete information
➔ It may cause damage to the organisation because of its excessive swiftness

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Q. Discuss the advantages of grapevine communication in an organisation.
A.
➔ Inexpensive
➔ Rapid
➔ Multidirectional
➔ An outlet for anxieties, worries, frustration
➔ Promotes unity and solidarity
➔ Voluntary and unforced
➔ May benefit a company with some FREE publicity (the company will have gotten
free spotlight) in the media when it has to disprove untrue allegations about an event.

Q. Discuss the disadvantages of 'upward/downward vertical communication' as one of

the means by which communication flows in an organisation.
A.
Distortion/Filtering: Filtering occurs when, for example, an employee passes a message
intended for upper level management through an immediate supervisor. The employee's
immediate supervisor may change the information in the message to reflect the supervisor's
opinion or understanding of the situation. The change in the message could be deliberate or
unintentional. Either way, intended recipient of the message may not receive the intended
message sent by the original sender.
Delay: Sometimes, front line employees hesitate to let managers know of a problem because
doing so means acceptance of failure. Hence, delays may take place to decide whether to
inform top management or to try to solve the problem themselves.
Gatekeeping: gatekeeping of any nature may occur.
Reluctance: In some cases, employees are reluctant to provide information through upward
channels because they fear retaliation. If employees feel that their messages are viewed as
complaints, they may feel that management will find a way to terminate them. (This also
applies to the person through whom the message ought to be sent - they may be reluctant to
pass the message on; they may ignore it).
Confidentiality: Messages intended for the superior authorities get to be known by the
subordinates.
Creates or perpetuates inferiority complex: The upward communication mostly favours the
superiors, so the employees tend to doubt their position thinking they are not worthy to talk to
the boss even if they have innovative ideas and suggestions.
Indiscipline/Bypassing: We get people who do not like authority and so they communicate
directly with the boss (this is mostly people who hold much higher positions in an
organisation than that of a secretary).
Negligence: a message may not reach the intended receiver due to the messenger's
negligence/forgetfulness.

COMMUNICATION CONTEXT - continued

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 Small Group Communication

Objectives

At the end of the unit, students should be able to:

 Define distinctive characteristics of small group communication;
 Establish relationships that exist among virtual groups, group formation and
members’ roles; and
 Appraise case studies involving conflict and negotiation in organizations.

Definition

Small-group communication refers to an interaction among three to nine people who share a
common goal and communicate collectively.
The key words in the definition above are:
 Interaction
 Common goal
 Collectively
These could involve problem-solving and decision-making.
Elements that characterise small groups
● It must be possible for the group members to interact face-to-face.
● There must be few enough members so that there is effective intragroup
communication. If the group is too big, this becomes difficult.
● There must be mutual awareness and shared understanding among the members e.g.
shared group goals. People waiting together at a bus stop would not be a small group,
because the behaviour of any one person is not significant for all the other members.
● Group members must follow the same rules. e.g. that two people do not speak at the
same time or that the comments or questions of one member are responded to by the
others rather than ignored.

Advantages and disadvantages of small groups

Advantages

● Groups provide additional workforce by subdividing responsibilities – six people can

get more done than two.
● Additional brainpower to generate ideas and present new perspectives in problem-

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 solving and decision-making.
● A feeling of acceptance among members who are united in their wish to see a solution
work, because each played a part in the agreed-upon solution.

Disadvantages

The possible disadvantages of working in groups are:

● Group decision-making or problem-solving can be more time-consuming than when
one person is involved.
● Groups are only as strong or as effective as the individuals in the group.
● Groups often substitute talk for action.
● Cliques (a small number of people who deliberately distance themselves from the
others) often develop within groups.
● Groups easily become too large to be effective.
● The feeling of personal responsibility is sometimes lost in a group.

Characteristics of small groups

The following elements characterise small groups:

Groups have goals, which can be defined as something that the group hopes to achieve. A
group may be striving to reach targets such as sales results, or it may be trying to work out a
suitable policy for the achievement of employment equity in the organisation. It is important
that these goals are realistic and attainable, otherwise the group may disintegrate.

Note: We must not confuse goals with tasks: the goal is the end product (eg a 15 percent sales
increase) and the task is the activity by means of which the goal can be achieved (eg a new
marketing strategy).

Most groups have norms, or standards, that define acceptable behaviour in the group.
These tend to be conduct-related, as in a meeting where only one person speaks at a time.
Sometimes these rules are explicitly stated – like when all members are told they have to
attend departmental meetings. At other times, these rules may only be implicit, for example,
when members usually bring cake to tea when they have a birthday. Very often norms are
covert (hidden) and only become a focal point when they are violated.

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Members have positions in a group. These positions refer to the parts that members play in a
group in terms of responsibilities or rights. For example, the secretary is responsible for the
planning of a meeting. Positions may be formalised and specialised, such as that of a
chairperson or a treasurer, or they may be informal and not strongly differentiated, as in the
case of a committee member without a portfolio.
Members fulfil key role requirements in a group. Roles refer to the behaviour associated
with the position. Position and title are linked, as in the case of a chairperson, whereas role
represents what the title holder is expected to do (e.g. the chairperson is a facilitator at a
meeting, making sure that speakers get a fair turn during discussions).

WORKING IN GROUPS IN THE DIGITAL ERA - VIRTUAL GROUPS

In an increasingly technological work environment, it has become common practice for a

group, especially if there are members working in different locations, to meet online by
means of webinar or video-conferencing programmes such as Zoom, MS Teams, Google
Meet, WhatsApp conference group calls, etc.

Advantages of virtual groups

Meeting virtually as a group offers several advantages:

People from various geographical locations and diverse backgrounds
are brought together.

The software such as Zoom or Google Meet enables an effective connection with
distantly placed people, who then feel less isolated.

Meeting virtually has time- and cost-saving benefits as members do not have to travel.

A recording of the discussion can be circulated to group members for future reference.

Members can easily share the recorded presentation online with others who might
have an interest. Files related to the presentation can also be shared.

Files can be edited or revised by group members, making collaboration much easier.
Meeting virtually allows for uninterrupted communication. This depends on reliable
technological equipment and software being available to and accessible by group
members.

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 Disadvantages of virtual groups

Meeting virtually poses several challenges for group interaction.

Some of the relational and social dimensions of group interaction are lost in video
contact. There is no chatting or catching up with each other's news before the meeting
starts or once it is over. Socialisation is an important implicit group norm since much
group information is often shared through informal interaction with one another.
About 50 percent or more of group members' knowledge of norms and procedures is
acquired in this way.
As there is no physical contact with other group members, the opportunity to make
decisions based on the vibe of the room, as would be the case in a actual physical
meeting, is absent from the proceedings.
Some members may be distracted by the technology and lose interest in the
discussion.

Ensuring effective virtual group communication

Members should be prepared to make an extra effort to build the relationship. Social cues
need to be made more explicit than in an offline group.
Since non-verbal cues are not as obvious, members should express their reactions to someone
else's input.
Increased participation leads to increased acceptance by the rest of the group.
Every member should make a contribution, such as responding to someone else's input.
Members should convey some of the relational or social aspects of communication, such as
wishing someone a happy birthday, in addition to impersonal element of an electronic
medium. This compensates to a certain extent for the lack if face-to-face interaction.

These articles provide more information on virtual groups:

Getting virtual teams right: https://hbr.org/2014/12/getting-virtual-teams-right.making-virtual-teams-work-ten
Making virtual teams work: Ten basic principles: https://hbr.org/2013/06/
Virtual team sociology: https://managementhelp.org/groups/virtual/defined.pdf

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UNIT 5: LANGUAGE USE
PARTS OF SPEECH
1. Noun
A person, place, thing, or idea
There are four different types of nouns:
 Common nouns: names that are general such as: girl, car, animal, town, city and
more.
 Proper nouns: name that are specific: Thandeka, Mandla, Durban, Kilimanjaro and
more.
 Abstract nouns: names of feelings and qualities: love, hatred, anger, leadership,
stress, anxiety and more.
 Collective nouns: names that collect different people or objects that are similar:
cattle, names of teams (Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs and more).
More examples of nouns: cat, fireman, house, pencil, Chicago and more.

2. Pronoun
A word used in place of a noun
Examples: he, she, it, they, you, we, us, our, ours, I and more.

3. Verb
A word that tells what someone or something does/ an action word/ or word of being.
Examples: sit, laugh, run, jump, sang, wrote and more.

4. Adjective
A word used to modify (describe) a noun
Examples: happy, short, sad, tall, red, fat, green, hairy
1. A beautiful girl.
2. A red car.

5. Adverb
 It can be added to a verb to modify its meaning; can also modify adjectives and other
adverbs.

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  It also tells you when, where, how, in what manner or to what extent an action is
performed.
 Many end in “ly” but not always!
Examples: – cheerfully – briskly – wickedly – Delicately – fast – never – now, carelessly,
slowly, angrily, later, everywhere, loudly, today, tonight, here, now, happily, anywhere and
more.
Examples:
1. He walks briskly.
2. Come here, now.
3. We met them yesterday.

6. Preposition
 A word placed BEFORE a noun or pronoun to show its location or direction.
 May also show a noun or pronoun’s relationship to some other word in the sentence.
Examples: to - at – with - for – against - across – by - in – from, under, over, in, on, in front
of, behind, next to.
1. He set next to her.
2. The cat sat on the mat.
3. I am driving to work.

7. Conjunction
A word used to connect other words, phrases, and clauses.
Examples: and, but, or, because, even though, however, yet, nevertheless, furthermore and
more.
1. I like your bag, but I’d rather keep mine.
2. Even though it is hot today, I shall do my academic work.
3. I come from an underprivileged background, yet I never made that an excuse to
achieve my goals in life.

8. Interjection

 A word that expresses strong or sudden emotion.

 It is used as an exclamation (!) by itself or with a comma following it if used at the
beginning of a sentence.

25
  It is capable of standing by itself.

Examples: Oh dear! - My goodness! - Wow! - Ouch! – Yes! –No! -Hey! -Oh! -Yea!
Hallelujah!

9. Article
There are three articles in English. They are:

 The
This we use when we are specific.
Example: The car she drives is amazing.

 An
We use “an” before a word that starts with a vowel sound.
Examples:
1. An apple.
2. An honourable guest.

 A
We use “a” before a word that starts with a consonant sound.
Examples:
1. A handsome boy.
2. A European hotel.

10. Helping verb/ auxiliary verb.

These are used after the subject in some tenses in order that the verb makes sense. There must
always be agreement between the subject and the verb (concord).

Examples:
 I am going to school.
 She was going to school.
 You are going to school.
 She is going to school.
 They have eaten food.

26
  They had eaten food.
 They will eat food.
 I shall see you soon.

Activity:
Identify the correct part of speech for each bold word in the following sentences.
(Noun, adverb, pronoun, preposition, verb, conjunction, auxiliary verb, adjective and
interjection)

1. The little dog ran.

2. Oh! You scared me!
3. The snow fell softly.
4. The house was red and small.
5. Pat and Joe quickly raked the leaves.
6. With great joy, mom and dad welcomed the new baby.
7. The boys fished in the gurgling stream.
8. Mary finished her reading assignment.
9. The earth travels around the sun.
10. English is my favorite subject.

TENSES

Present Tense
 This is one of the main tenses in English.
 The tense of a sentence indicates “when” an activity takes place. In a case of this
tense, the activity or action must be current or present.
 A verb (action word) is used to indicate the tense (time) of a sentence.
 In some instances, a helping verb is used together with a verb in a sentence to
demonstrate the tense.

SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

There are grammatical rules that govern the usage of every tense in English and these rules
need to be adhered to. The following are rules to follow:

27
  The subject and the verbal agreement (concord). In other words, the subject and the
verb should be agreement.
 A simple sentence should have a subject, verb and an object.

Subject:
This refers to someone or an object (something) that does action in a sentence.
The subject is found at the beginning a sentence.
Example: Thandi eats food.
“Thandi” is the subject of the sentence as she is the one who executes (does) something.

Verb:
This refers to the action word.
Example: Mandla boils water.
“Boils” is a verb as it tells us of the action taken by Mandla.

Object:
An entity (Noun or pronoun) that is acted upon by the subject.
Example: They eat food.
“Food” is an object.

NB: Some sentences may not have an object.

Examples:
 They eat.
 They sing
 He cooks well.

 Sentences in Simple Present Tense do not have a helping (auxiliary) verb.

 The nature or form of a subject determines the nature of a verb in a sentence.
 If the subject is in the singular (one) form, the verb should be in the present form/
tense with either “es” /“s” at the end. On the other hand, if the subject is in the plural
(many) form, the verb should be in the present form without “es” or “s” at the end.
Singular form Plural form
She loves people. They love people.
He plays soccer every Saturday. They play soccer every Saturday.

28
 This student always arrives early. These students always arrive early.
Cindy goes to school every day. Cindy and Michael go to school every day.
I go to school. We go to school.

ASKING QUESTIONS IN SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

 If the subject is in the singular form, the question begins with “Does” followed by the
subject, then the verb (in simple present tense, with neither “es” nor “s”) and the rest
of the sentence.
 If the subject is in the plural form or “I”, the question begins with “Do” followed by
the subject, then the verb and the rest of the sentence.

Have a look at the examples below:

Statements/ sentences Questions

1. She goes to town. Does she go to town?
2. The students present their speeches Do students present their speeches today?
today.
3. The future looks bright. Does the future look bright?
4. I run every Wednesday morning. Do I run every Wednesday morning?
5. Varsity life seems hard. Does varsity life seem hard?
6. A career in engineering opens many Does a career in engineering open many
doors. doors?

Activity 1
Choose the best form of the verb in brackets.
1. She always (prefer/ prefers/ preferred) beans to meat.
2. Students (write/ writes/ wrote) their weekly tests every Friday.
3. It (looks/ look/ looked) like her design.
4. This car (makes/ make/ made) a statement.
5. They (win/ wins/ won) all the time.
6. You (get/ gets/ got) out of my life!

29
7. I (goes/ go/ went) to church every Sunday.
(You and I are treated as plural; verbs do not end in “es”/ “s”).

Activity 2
You need to formulate seven sentences in Simple Present Tense. Four of these sentences
should have a subject in the singular form and four of them should have a subject in the plural
form.

SIMPLE PAST TENSE

The subject and the verbal agreement (concord) is crucial.

A simple sentence should have a subject, verb, and an object.

Subject:
This refers to someone or an object (something) that does action in a sentence.
The subject is found at the beginning a sentence.
Example: Thandi ate food.
“Thandi” is the subject of the sentence as she is the one who executed (did) something.

Verb:
This refers to the action word.
Example: Mandla boiled water.
“Boiled” is a verb as it tells us of the action Mandla took.

Subject: “I”
If the subject of the sentence is “I”, the verb should also be in the past tense.
Example: I went to school.

Object:
An entity (Noun or pronoun) that is acted upon by the subject.
Example: They ate food.
“Food” is an object.

NB: Some sentences may not have an object.

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Sentences in Simple Past Tense do not have a helping verb/ auxiliary.
Whether the subject is the singular form (one) or plural (many) the verb is in the past tense
and remains the same.

Singular form Plural form

She loved people. They loved people
He played soccer every Saturday. They played soccer every Saturday.
This student always arrived early. These students always arrived early.
Cindy went to school every day. Cindy and Michael went to school every
day.

Activity 1
Choose the best form of the verb in brackets.

1. She always (prefer/ prefers/ preferred) beans to meat.

2. Students (write/ writes/ wrote) their weekly tests every Friday.
3. It (looks/ look/ looked) like her design.
4. This car (makes/ make/ made) a statement.
5. They (win/ wins/ won) all the time.

Activity 2
You need to formulate eight sentences in Simple Past Tense. Four of these sentences should
have a subject in the singular form and four of them should have a subject in the plural form.

Activity 3
Reflect on what you have learnt today.

PRESENT CONTINUOUS TENSE

This tense indicates ongoing action at present.

Rules:
A simple sentence will have the subject, auxiliary (helping) verb and an object.

31
Some sentences do not indicate the object.
Example: She is cooking.

An auxiliary verb follows a subject then a verb

Verbs in this tense add ‘ing’

Example: She is cooking food.

Subject: She
Auxiliary: is
Verb: cooking
Object: food

The nature of the auxiliary is determined by the form of the subject. If the subject is in the
singular form, we use ‘is’ and if the subject is in the plural form, we use ‘are’. In a case
where the subject is ‘I’ we use ‘am’.

Collective nouns assume a plural auxiliary.

Example: Mamelodi Sundowns are playing Manchester United.

Singular subject Plural subject

She is going for a walk. They are going for a walk.
He is cooking. They are cooking.
Nonhle is playing soccer. Sipho and Nomfundo are playing soccer.
Themba is baking. They are baking.
I am studying for a test. They are studying for a test.
Orlando Pirates are playing Kaizer Chiefs.

When asking questions:

We begin the question with an auxiliary, followed by the subject, then the rest of the
sentence.

Examples:
Is she reading her books?

32
Are they preparing for the oral examination?
Am I understanding Mathematics?

Negative form of sentences.

We add ‘not’ after the auxiliary.

Examples:
She is not talking to me.
They are not reading well.
I am not accompanying them to the wedding on Saturday.

Activity 1
Re-write the following sentences in the Present Continuous Tense

1. We watch a movie in this Cinema.

2. You shop in that market.
3. I sing different kinds of songs, especially modern.
4. I listen to melodious songs.
5. He travels around the world.
6. They play cricket in that field.
7. The poet writes romantic poems.
8. The lyricist writes realistic songs.
9. I do not quarrel with you.
10. My mom cooks beef with cabbage.

Activity 2
Make the present continuous:
1. (she / go home now)
__________________________________________________________________
2. (I / read a great book)
__________________________________________________________________
3. (she / not / wash her hair)
__________________________________________________________________
4. (the cat / chase mice?)

33
__________________________________________________________________
5. (she / cry?)
__________________________________________________________________
6. (he / not / study Latin)
__________________________________________________________________
7. (we / drive to London?)
__________________________________________________________________
8. (they / watch TV?)
__________________________________________________________________
9. (where / she / go now?)
__________________________________________________________________
10. (I / not / leave now)
__________________________________________________________________
11. (you / not / run)
__________________________________________________________________
12. (why / he / leave?)
__________________________________________________________________
13. (how / I / travel?)
__________________________________________________________________
14. (it / not / rain)
__________________________________________________________________
15. (when / we / arrive?)
__________________________________________________________________
16. (where / they / stay?)
__________________________________________________________________
17. (it / rain)
__________________________________________________________________
18. (she / come at six)
__________________________________________________________________
19. (he / watch a film at the moment)
__________________________________________________________________
20. (we / not / sleep)
__________________________________________________________________

34
PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE
Rules:
A simple sentence will have the subject, auxiliary (helping) verb and an object.
Some sentences do not indicate the object.
Example: She was cooking.

An auxiliary verb follows a subject then a verb

Verbs in this tense end with ‘ing’

Example: She was cooking food.

Subject: She
Auxiliary: was
Verb: cooking
Object: food

The nature of the auxiliary is determined by the form of the subject.

If the subject is in the singular form, we use ‘was’.
If the subject is in the plural form, we use ‘were’.
In a case where the subject is ‘I’ we use ‘was’.

Collective nouns assume a plural auxiliary.

Example: Mamelodi Sundowns were playing Manchester United.

Singular subject Plural subject

She was going for a walk. They were going for a walk.
He was cooking. They were cooking.
Nonhle was playing soccer. Sipho and Nomfundo were playing soccer.
Themba was baking. They were baking.
I was studying for a test. They were studying for a test.
Orlando Pirates were playing Kaizer Chiefs.

When asking questions:

35
The auxiliary begins the sentence, followed by the subject then the rest of the sentence.

Below are examples:

Was she reading her books?

Were they preparing for the oral examination?
Was I understanding Mathematics?

Negative form of sentences

We add “not” after the auxiliary.

Examples:

She was not talking to me.

They were not reading well.
I was not accompanying them to the wedding on Saturday.

Activity 1
Re-write the following sentences in Past Continuous Tense

Example: Thando ate her food.

Answer: Thando was eating her food.
1. We watch a movie in Cinema.
2. You shop in the market.
3. I sing different kinds of songs, especially modern.
4. I listen to melodious songs.
5. He travels around the world.
6. They play cricket in that field.
7. The poet writes romantic poems.
8. The lyricist writes realistic songs.
9. My mom cooks beef with cabbage.

36
Activity 2

Make the past continuous tense:

Example: (he) watch soccer.

Answer: He was watching soccer.

1. (she / go home now)

__________________________________________________________________
2. (I / read a great book)
__________________________________________________________________
3. (she / not / wash her hair)
__________________________________________________________________
4. (the cat / chase mice?)
__________________________________________________________________
5. (she / cry?)
__________________________________________________________________
6. (he / not / study Latin)
__________________________________________________________________
7. (we / drive to London?)
__________________________________________________________________
8. (they / watch TV?)
__________________________________________________________________
9. (where / she / go now?)
__________________________________________________________________
10. (I / not / leave now)
__________________________________________________________________
11. (you / not / run)
__________________________________________________________________
12. (why / he / leave?)
__________________________________________________________________
13. (how / I / travel?)

37
__________________________________________________________________
14. (it / not / rain)
__________________________________________________________________
15. (when / we / arrive?)
__________________________________________________________________
16. (where / they / stay?)
__________________________________________________________________
17. (it / rain)
__________________________________________________________________
18. (she / come at six)
__________________________________________________________________
19. (he / watch a film at the moment)
__________________________________________________________________
20. (we / not / sleep)
__________________________________________________________________

38
PRESENT PERFECT TENSE

This tense uses two auxiliaries: ‘Has’ and ‘have’

Verbs should be in the Past Participle Tense.

Examples of verbs in the Past Participle Tense

Present Tense Past Tense Past Participle Tense
Go Went Gone
Speak Spoke Spoken
Drive Drove Driven
Sing Sang Sung

Examples of verbs that only change twice.

Present Tense Past Tense Past Participle Tense
Catch Caught Caught
Look Looked Looked
Practice Practiced Practiced

Examples of those verbs that do not change/ remain the same

Present Tense Past Tense Past Participle Tense
Cut Cut Cut
Put Put Put
Broadcast Broadcast Broadcast

The nature of the subject determines the auxiliary to be used. If the subject is in the singular
form, ‘has’ is used.
Example: She has eaten her food

If the subject is in the plural form, ‘have’ is used.

Example: They have eaten their food.

If the subject is the pronoun ‘I’, ‘Have’ is used.

Example: I have eaten my food.

39
Asking questions
The auxiliary begins the sentence, then the subject and the remaining phrase. A question
mark is put at the end of the question.

Examples:
Have they eaten their food?
Have I cut my rope?
Has Thandeka eaten all food?

Negative Form
The subject begins the sentence, followed the auxiliary, then ‘not’ and the remaining part of
the sentence.
Example: Sipho has not broadcast news yet.

Formative Assessment:

Activities:

A: Change the tense of sentences into Present Perfect Tense.

1. I write my notes.
2. Students go through their work during lockdown.
3. The country honoured the president’s statement.
4. Sipho and Thandi succeed in all they do.

B: Write sentences into the negative form.

1. I write my notes.
2. Students go through their work during lockdown.
3. The country honoured the president’s statement.
4. Sipho and Thandi succeed in all they do.

C: Ask questions in Present Perfect Tense.

1. I write my notes.
2. Students go through their work during lockdown.
3. The country honoured the president’s statement.

40
 4. Sipho and Thandi succeed in all they do.

PAST PERFECT TENSE

This tense uses one auxiliary: ‘Had’.
Verbs should be in the Past Participle Tense.

Examples of verbs in the Past Participle Tense

Present Tense Past Tense Past Participle Tense
Go Went Gone
Speak Spoke Spoken
Drive Drove Driven
Sing Sang Sung

Examples of verbs that only change twice.

Present Tense Past Tense Past Participle Tense
Catch Caught Caught
Look Looked Looked
Practise Practised Practised

Examples of those verbs that do not change/ remain the same

Present Tense Past Tense Past Participle Tense
Cut Cut Cut
Put Put Put
Broadcast Broadcast Broadcast

If the subject is in the singular form, ‘had’ is used.

Example: She had eaten her food

If the subject is in the plural form, ‘had’ is used.

Example: They had eaten their food.

If the subject is the pronoun ‘I’, ‘had’ is used.

Example: I had eaten my food.

41
Asking questions
The auxiliary begins the sentence, then the subject and the remaining phrase. A question
mark is put at the end of the question.

Examples:
Had they eaten their food?
Had I cut my rope?
Had Thandeka eaten all food?

Negative Form
The subject begins the sentence followed the auxiliary then ‘not’ and the remaining part of
the sentence.
Example: Sipho had not broadcast news yet.

Activities:

A: Change the tense of sentences into Past Perfect Tense.

Example: She cooks lunch.

Answer: She had cooked lunch.

1. I ate all my food.

2. Students read their books.
3. The country honours the president’s statement on a lockdown.
4. Thandi and Nosihle go to the library.

B: Write sentences into the negative form.

1. I ate all my food.
2. Students read their books.
3. The country honours the president’s statement on a lockdown.
4. Thandi and Nosihle go to the library.

42
C: Ask questions in Past Perfect Tense.
1. I ate all my food.
2. Students read their books.
3. The country honour the president’s statement on a lockdown.
4. Thandi and Nosihle go to the library.

43
THE SENTENCE, ITS CLAUSES AND PHRASES

What is a sentence?

In this section you will study the sentence as the biggest unit of grammatical analysis. It
should be understood that a sentence is made up of clauses. The Independent or Main
clause carries all elements of the sentence; therefore it can stand on its own. The Dependent
or Subordinate clause cannot stand on its own; it needs to be attached to the main clause for
it to be completely meaningful.
Furthermore, clauses are made up phrases. We have the following phrases in English: noun
phrase, verb phrase, adjective phrase, adverbial phrase and the prepositional phrase.
The principal or headword of each phrase is the part of speech after which it is named. For
example:

Noun Phrase = [The young intelligent boy]

Verb Phrase = The boy [could have been playing] .
Adjective Phrase = She seemed [extremely pleasant].
It modifies a noun and is built on the adjective which functions as the head of the phrase.
Prepositional Phrase = She arrived [by plane].
It begins with a preposition which functions as the head of the phrase.
Adverb Phrase = We are expecting him to come [next year].
He ran [very quickly].
It tells us where, when, how and why an event occurred. The adverb functions as the head of
the phrase.

Moreover, a sentence is made up of a Subject in which the noun or pronoun is obligatory,

and a Predicate which must always contain a verb.

SUBJECT and PREDICATE

It is traditional to view a sentence as having two main constituents: the subject and the
predicate. The predicate consists of the verb and any other elements of the sentence apart
from the subject.

44
 Subject predicate
I learned all this much later
The journalist is a young man with a broad experience of the world
The fate of the land parallels the fate of the culture

In the predicate the most important constituent is the verb. A sentence may consist of only a
verb. Think of an example.
The verb of a sentence may consist of more than one word: main verb + auxiliaries /
helping verbs
Identify the main verb in: could have been reading

Therefore, there is no single simple definition of a sentence. Some scholars have suggested
the following definitions (which have their own shortcomings):

Approach 1 : A sentence expresses a complete thought.

✔ The above is a notional definition, i.e, it defines a term by the notion or idea it
conveys.
✔ The challenge: some notices seem to be complete in themselves but are not generally
regarded as sentences: Exit, Danger, 50 mph limit
✔ Some sentences consist of more than one thought. How many thoughts are in the
following:

This week marks the 300th anniversary of the publication of Sir Isaac Newton’s
Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica, a fundamental work for the whole of
modern science and a key influence on the philosophy of the European
Enlightenment.

Approach 2: A string of words beginning with a capital letter and ending with a full stop.

✔ The above is a formal definition, i.e, it defines a term by the form or shape of what the
term refers to.
✔ Its inadequacy: capital letters are used for names, and full stops for abbreviations
✔ Some strings would be recognised as sentences even though they do not end with a full
stop, question mark or exclamation mark.
o An Irish Airman Foresees his Death
o Do not Enter
✔ The definition is directed only towards orthographic sentences, that is, sentences that
appear in the written language. Spoken sentences do not have capital letters and periods.

Simple and multiple sentences

45
The enquiry left in its wake a number of casualties. I was one of them.
a. Combine the sentences above using a co-ordinating conjunction.

b. Combine the two sentences below by putting a connecting word in front of the
first sentence.

Sipho did not apologise. They had been waiting for him for three hours.

A sentence or a sentence-like construction contained within a sentence is called a clause.

✔ A sentence that does not contain another clause within it is a simple sentence. If it
contains one or more clauses, it is a compound or complex sentence.

c. You can’t insist that your children love each other.

d. The building was vacated before the bomb-disposal squad was called.
e. When we returned three hours later, no wolves were in sight.
f. My father always hoped that I would become a doctor and that must have been why he
took me along when he visited patients.

TYPES OF SENTENCES

Types of sentences according to structure

i. Simple sentence

The manager announces the survey results.

Here there is one main/independent clause; therefore this is a simple sentence.

ii. Compound sentence

The manager announces the results and the employees cheer loudly.
Here there are two independent clauses combined by a coordinating conjunction and.
Therefore this is a compound sentence.

iii. Complex sentence

While the manager was announcing the survey results, the employees cheered loudly.

The first clause separated by the comma from the main clause is a Subordinate /
Dependent clause because it cannot stand on its own. For its meaning to be complete, it
depends on the second clause.

The second clause can operate independently because it is a full sentence, that is, it has a
subject = the employees; and the predicate = cheered loudly. Therefore, it is the Main /
Independent clause.

The whole sentence is complex because it contains both the Subordinate and the
Independent clauses which are combined by a subordinating conjunction while.

46
Types of sentences according to meaning

i. Declaratives
The new proposals have galvanised the normally disparate community into a potent fighting
force.

ii. Interrogatives
Do you have your own personal computer?
Why are you beset with gloom?

iii. Imperatives
Open the door for me.

iv. Exclamatives
How well you look!

POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE SENTENCES

Sentences are either positive or negative.

If the auxiliary verb is present, we usually change a positive sentence into a negative sentence
by inserting not or n’t after the auxiliary.

Example:
He has (not) been working for a year.
I can’t tell the difference. (informal)
She never had a secretary.
Nobody talked to us.
This is no ordinary painting.

If there is no auxiliary verb in the sentence we introduce the dummy operator: do/does
or did.

Does is used for the third person singular subjects = he, she or she.
Do is used for first person subjects (I & we), second person subjects (you) and the third
person plural subject (they).
Did is used for the verbs in the past tense (the verb changes to the present tense when it is
accompanied by did as an auxiliary verb).

ACTIVE AND PASSIVE SENTENCES

47
Sentences are either active or passive. We often choose whether to make them active or
passive. The choice involves differences in the form of the verb. Voice reflects whether the
subject of the sentence is carrying out the action (in the verb) or the action is being carried
out on the subject.
Charles Dickens wrote many novels. This sentence is in the Active Voice because the subject
(Charles Dickens) is active or doing the writing of the novels
Many novels were written by Charles Dickens. In this sentence the new subject (which was
the direct object in the previous sentence) is not doing the writing, so it is Passive in terms of
voice.

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PUNCTUATION MARKS

1. Full stop (.)

It is used at the end of a sentence (statement).

Example: I am running.
It is also used for abbreviation.
Example: Dr. (Doctor)

2. Question mark (?)

It is used to indicate a question.

Example: When are lectures resuming?

3. Comma (,)

A comma to separate items that are listed.

Example: I need the following: Books, money, food and more.

4. Apostrophe (’)

An apostrophe is used to indicate contractions and omissions.

A contraction is a shortened form of a word (or group of words) that omits certain letters or
sounds.
Example: He’s coming today. (The longer version is: ‘He is’)

An apostrophe can also be used to indicate ownership.

Example: This is Thembelihle’s bag.

5. Exclamation mark (!)

This punctuation mark is usually used to indicate strong feelings or high volume (shouting),
or to show emphasis, and often marks the end of a sentence, for example: "Watch out!”

49
6. A colon (:)
A colon is also used between hours and minutes
Example: Our meeting is scheduled for 10:00 today.

It is also used in titles and subtitles of books, city and publisher in bibliographies or
references.
Example: Mhlongo, P.N. (2020): Understanding English Grammar; Pretoria, CUM Books.

A colon is also used before direct speech or in a dialogue before the actual words spoken are
written.
Example: Thandi: “I’m not happy with your actions.”
Mandla says: “I have worked hard for my possessions.”

This punctuation mark is used before listing.

Example: I need the following for the trip: Food, mat, a camp chair and more.

7. Semi-colon (;)

Semicolons can be used in place of commas to separate the items in a list, particularly when
the elements of that list contain commas.

Example: I need the following for my house: a specious lounge; two bedrooms; a verandah
and more.

Semicolons can also be used to separate phrases related in a sentence/ to show opposites.
Example: Minenhle had an apple; I had an orange.

8. A hyphen (-)

The hyphen (‐) is a punctuation mark used to join words, and to separate syllables of a single
word.
Example: Mother-in-law

Note: Once different syllables are hyphenated, they become one word.

50
9. Inverted commas/ quotation marks (“”) or (‘’)
These are used in a sentence or phrase to indicate direct speech or direct quotation.
Example: Smiso: “I need my money.”

10. Ellipsis (….)

Ellipsis usually indicates an intentional omission of a word, sentence, or whole section from a
text without altering its original meaning.
Example: I will be with you through all the trouble, blessings, …

11.Capital letter

Capital letters are used:

 At the beginning of a sentence.
 At the beginning of a proper noun: Thandi, Sipho, Kilimanjaro etc.
 At the beginning of words that form titles of books, movies, novels, people and more.

GRADABLE AND NON-GRADABLE ADJECTIVES

• Gradable adjectives describe qualities that vary along a scale of degree or extent such
as size, age, weight, etc: large/small; old/young; heavy/light.
• Non-gradable adjectives refer to ‘all-or-nothing’ qualities like sex/gender and
nationality: male, Austrian, chemical, wooden, etc.
• Gradable adjectives can be modified by degree adverbs like very, extremely, utterly,
rather, etc.
• They can also have comparative and superlative forms.
• The shorter and more common gradable adjectives take –er and –est suffixes.
• Longer and less common ones are modified by a separate comparative or superlative
adverb: more or most.

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Irregular adjectives: good/better/best. Provide more examples.

Plain Comparative Superlative Degree adverbs

Gradable funny funnier funniest very funny

beautiful more beautiful most beautiful rather beautiful

good better best quite good

Non-
gradable

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