21- ] Basic Grammar For Beginners , Punctuation

21 - ] Basic Grammar For Beginners 

27 - Punctuation

1 - ] Capital letters are used at the beginning of :

1 . The first word in a sentence .

In many parts of the world people grow rice .

2 . The first word of a direct speech .

 Sam cried , “Come quickly .”

3 . Names of persons , cities , towns , countries , rivers , seas , mountains , oceans .

Ahmad - John - Sara - Cairo - Egypt - USA - The Nile - The Red Sea - The Alps - The Atlantic - Pacific

4 . Adjectives describing nationality .

English - American - French - Italian - Chinese - Swedish - Kuwaiti

5 . The names of days of the week , months and festivals .

 Monday - Friday - August - Ramadan - Christmas

6 . Short forms of titles .

Mr. = Dr.

2 - ] A comma ( , ) is used .

1 . to separate items .

Yesterday I bought a shirt , a pair of shoes , a pair of socks , and a suit .

2 . To separate clauses or phrases from the rest of the sentence .

If you study hard , you’ll succeed .

3 . To mark off direct speech .

 She said , “I have seen this film before .”

4 . In letters after salutations .

 Dear Sam , Dear Natalia ,

3 . A full stop   ( . ) is used .

1 . At the end of every statement .

She went shopping yesterday .

2 . After abbreviations .

Mr. Solomon - Dr. Henry

4 . A question mark ( ? )  is used :

At the end of questions .

Where did you go yesterday ?

Can I borrow your book ?

5 . The quotation marks ( “  “ )  are used .

1 . to enclose direct speech .

He said , “I don’t understand this lesson .”

2 . to enclose titles of books , plays , newspapers and magazines .

“Oliver Twist”  - “Hamlet” - “Al-Ahram”  - “The Times”

6 . The apostrophe ( ‘ ) is used .

1 . to show possession .

children’s hats - Ali’s car

2 . to show the omission of a letter , letters .

didn’t - I’ll - I won’t - I’ve - It’s

7 . An exclamation mark or point ( ! ) is used :

1 . to end an exclamatory sentence .

What an amazing cook you are !

2 . Interjections [ An interjection is a word or words that show feeling . If the interjection stands alone , it is followed by an exclamation point or mark . If it begins a sentence , it is set off by a comma .

Hooray ! They won the game . Oh , I knew they would !

Oh , no ! I can’t believe it .

Amazing ! The fans love the game .

Goodness ! Both teams play hard .

Wow ! What a game that was !

8 . a semicolon ( ; )  is used :

1 . to link clauses only if the clauses are closely related in meaning .

Uncle Ray likes sweet potatoes ; Aunt Janie prefers peas and carrots .

Uncle Ray likes the mountains ; Aunt Janie prefers the beach .

2 . between items in a series when the items contain commas .

Mr. Schultz , my science teacher ; Ms. O’Hara , my English teacher ; Mrs. Harry , my math teacher ; and Mr. Kim , my social studies teacher , attended the seventh-grade picnic.

3 . Use a semicolon rather than a comma before a coordinating conjunction to join independent clauses that contain commas .

I wrote to Ann , Ramon , and Mai ; and Jean notified Charles , Tom , and Sue .

9 . a colon ( : )  is used

1 . before a list of items , especially after expressions such as the following or as follows .

The primary colors are as follows : red , blue , and yellow .

You will need these items for map work : a ruler , colored pencils , and tracing paper .

Jack’s pocket contained the following items : a key , a note from a friend , a button , and two quarters .

2 . Conventional situations

A. the hour and the minute

8:30 A.M     - 10:00 P.M.

B . after the salutation of a business letter .

Dear Sir of Madam : - To Whom It May Concern :  - Dear Dr. Christian: - Dear Mrs. Foster :

3 . between chapter and verse in Quran or Biblical references and between all titles and subtitles .

1 Chronicles 22 : 6-19

AlBaqara 2 : 7- 20

“Oral Storytelling : Making the Winter Shorter”

Exercise

Correctly use the punctuation marks you have learnt :

1 . are you coming to the party

2 . is there any way I can help you

3 . give me six eggs a packet of tea half a kilo of coffee a box of matches and a bottle of milk

4 . because all cant speak French or English he never enjoys traveling abroad

5 . atif went to his father and said I want some money his father said why do you want money for atif answered I want money to by a book his father asked which book atif answered English today

6 . the king was very sad the nightingale sang onc a year for five years then the king became ill he lay in his bed with his eyes closed the doctors went away and said the king is dead

7 . sam said I like reading English books

rashid said I want a sandwich

8 . where is tom asked the teacher he is absent said Nasser but he s coming to school on monday

9 . dr charles lives in new york

10 . don’t make noise the teacher told the children

11 . I wont be back until six oclock

12 . mother gave omar and I some sandwiches

13 . where do you always park your car

14 . have you ever seen an elephant