TOEFL Grammar In Brief

MODIFIERS – ADJECTIVES AFTER VERBS OF
SENSATION
feel, look, seen, appear,
taste, smell, sound

MODIFIERS – NOUN ADJECTIVES
When nouns are used as adjectives, they do not have
plural or possessive form
Exception: The following nouns always end in –s, but
are singular in number when they used as names of
courses or sciences
physics, mathematics, economics
He is an economics teacher

BUT: The current economic situation is extremely
uncertain

Nouns (N) are sometimes found as part of
hyphenated or compound adjectives (adjectives of
more than one word joined by hyphens). THESE
NOUNS ARE NEVER PLURAL.

MODIFIERS – FEW, LITTLE, MUCH AND MANY
few, fewer, fewest, many + plural count nouns
little, less, least, much + noncount nouns
these are plural -
“people, men, women, children, police”
“news” is singular

MODIFIERS CARDINAL AND ORDINAL NUMBERS
1. ordinal numbers are used in the pattern
the + ordinal + noun (N)
2. cardinal numbers are used in the pattern
noun (N) + cardinal

MODIFIERS – COMPARATIVES
a. don’t use both “-er” and “more”
b. be careful to use only “than” after a comparative
structure
c. be careful to use the comparative for two items,
not three or more. For three or more use
superlative
Logic errors:
- do not compare two nouns that can not be
compared
- do not compare a noun to itself

MODIFIERS – SUPERLATIVE
a. always use “the” in the superlative pattern
b. be careful not to use “-est” and “most” in the
same superlative
c. do not put “than” after the superlative
d. be careful to use the superlative for three or

MODIFIERS – CAUSE AND RESULT
SO
a. so + adjective + that
b. so + adverb + that
c. so + many (few) + count noun + that
d. so + much (little) + non-count noun + that
SUCH
a. such + adjective + plural count noun + that
b. such + adjective + non-count noun + that
SO or SUCH
so + adjective + a + singular count noun + that
such + a + adjective + singular count noun + that
1. Be careful not to omit “a” before a
singular count noun
2. The pattern of cause-and-result is
expressed by so/such…that. Do not use
“too” or “as”

MODIFIERS – NEGATION
NOT is an adverb that negates verb
NO is an adjective that indicates “the absence of
something. It modifies nouns.
NONE is a pronoun, meaning not any or not one.
Use NONE when the noun it replaces has been
mentioned already
Use ANY after negative words.
There are some words that have negative
meanings even though they do not appear do to
be negative :
hardly, scarcely, rarely,
seldom, without, only

USE ONLY ONE NEGATIVE WORD IN THE
SENTENCE
Remember that “no longer” is an idiomatic
negative expression of time.

PRONOUNS
PRONOUNS – RELATIVES
who, whom, which, that and whose are relative
pronouns used to introduce relative clauses
(adjective clauses)
1. WHO and WHOM are used for persons
2. WHICH is used for things
3. THAT can be used for persons and things
4. WHOSE is used to show possession. It can be
followed by persons and things

PRONOUNS – PERSONAL-CASE
1. Subject pronouns (I, you, he, she, is, we,
they) are used in the subject position and after
the verb to be
2. Object pronouns (me, you, him, her, it, us,
them) are used as objects of verbs and
prepositions and as subjects of infinitives
NOTE:
a. Pronouns in apposition are in the same case as the
pronouns they follow
WRONG: Let’s, you and I, go dancing Friday night
RIGHT: Let’s, you and me, go dancing Friday night.
“us” is the object to “let”.
“you and me” must also be in the objective case
b. Pronouns after the conjunctions “as” or “than”
should be subject pronouns when they function as
subject
He is as tall as I (** tall)
c. The correct forms of the reflexive pronouns for
“him” and “them” are “himself” and “themselves”.
Not “hisself” and “theirself”

PRONOUNS – PERSONAL-CASE
WHO and WHOEVER are subject pronoun
WHOM and WHOMEVER are object pronouns
WHO (whoever) + Verb
WHOM (WHOMEVER) + subject + Verb
Sometimes expressions like the following separate
who (whoever) or whom (whomever) from its own
verb or subject and verb
I think
She said
We know
Do you know
He is a student who I believe can do the job
PRONOUNS – POSSESIVES
Use the possessive case with GERUND (V-ing used as
a noun)
I resented their interrupting our conversations

The antecedent of a pronoun must be clearly
understood
As Bob got off the place, he waved to his father
(“he” clearly refers to “Bob”)

PRONOUNS – PERSON
Do not carelessly change the person of a pronoun
A student has to expect to work hard when he
goes to college
NOTES:
a. a student, a person or one can use the
following third-person singular pronouns
he, she or he or she
him, her or him or her
his, her or his and her
b. The possessive pronoun for “one” can be
“one’s” or “his”, but never “ones”

PRONOUNS – NUMBER
1. pronouns must agree in number with their
antecedents
2. The following indefinite pronouns are singular
and take singular pronouns
each, either, neither, one, all words
ending in –one, -body, -thing
Each of the women took off her coat
3. When compound subjects are joined by
“neither…nor” or “either…or” the pronoun
will agree with the subject nearer the verb
Neither my mother nor my sisters could lend
me their sewing machine
4. Some words appear to be plural but are
actually singular.
physics, news, mathematics, economics,
politics

PRONOUNS – THOSE MODIFIED
The demonstrative pronoun THOSE can be
followed by a phrase or clause that modifies it
No one is allowed in the room except those who
have paid
The personal pronouns THEY and THEM should

BASIC PATTERNS
BASIC PATTERNS – INDIRECT OBJECTS
Some verbs may be followed by two objects (an
indirect object and a direct object).
1.
give
bring I.O. D.O
My father often gives me a gift
D.O. Obj.
My father often gives a gift to me
send
offer
pass
take
tell
read
write
teach
sell



2.
buy
I.O. + D.O
D.O. + to + object
I.O. + D.O
D.O. + for + object
I.O. D.O
John usually buys Mary a gift
D.O. Obj.
John usually buys a gift for Mary
fix
make
get


3.
explain
announce
describe
only
D.O. + to + object
only
D.O Obj.
He explained his idea to us
deliver
mention
say
report
return


4.
ask
only.
I.O. D.O.

cost
charge



BASIC PATTERNS – EMBEDDED QUESTIONS
1. The pattern for an embedded question in a
statement or question :
QUESTION WORD + SUBJECT + VERB
QUESTION WORD/SUBJECT + VERB
WRONG: I cannot see what says the sign
RIGHT: I cannot see what the sign says
WRONG: Do you know who is he?
WRONG: Do you know who he is

BASIC PATTERNS – TO/FOR
FOR + noun phrase
TO + Verb Infinitive

BASIC PATTERNS – CLAUSES
INDEPENDENT CLAUSES
1. Every sentence must have at least one
independent clause. An independent
clause consist of at least one subject and
one finite verb and is a complete thought.
2. Two independent clauses can be joined by
AND, BUT, OR, NOR, OR, FOR

DEPENDENT CLAUSES
A sentence may have one or more dependent
clauses, each one or which must have its own
subject and finite verb. A dependent clause must
be attached to an independent clause. It is
incomplete by itself. There are three kinds of
dependent clauses: NOUN, RELATIVE
(ADJECTIVE) and ADVERB
A NOUN clause functions as a subject or an
object. Each noun clause which has its own
subject and verb may be an embedded statement
or an embedded question
1. Embedded statements are often introduced by
“that”
That he was a criminal surprised me. (N.Cl. as
Statement)
I know (that) he is from Canada (N.Cl. as
Object)
2. Embedded questions are introduced by “WH-
“questions
A RELATIVE clause functions as an adjective/.
Each relative clause, which has its own subject
and verb, is introduced by one of the following
words WHO, WHOM, WHICH, THAT, WHOSE
Note: WHOM and THAT when used as objects,
are optional
An ADVERB clause functions as an adverb. Each
adverb clause has its own subject and verb. The
following is a list of common used words that
introduce adverb clauses
BEFORE, AFTER, SINCE, WHILE, WHEN, IF,
ALTHOUGH
Introductory adverb clauses are followed by a
comma.
Notes:
a. Be sure that every dependent clause is
attached to an independent clause
b. Remember that all clauses independent and
dependent have their own subject and finite
verb
c. A finite verb is on that can be conjugated and
shows tense, that is ends in –ed, -s, etc. A
gerund (V-ing) or and infinitive (to-V) is not
a finite verb
d. Remember that two independent clauses are
joined by coordinate conjunctions (AND,
BUT…). They cannot be joined by a comma only

BASIC PATTERNS – ORDER OF ADVERBS
1. In general, place adverbs (or adverbial phrases)
after the verb or after the object, if any. (Do not
separate the subject from the verb or the verb from
its object
SUBJECT + VERB + ADVERB
SUBJECT + VERB + OBJECT + ADVERB (or
ADV.PHRASE)
2. Some adverbs can come before a single-word verb
or the main verb
3. Single-word adverbs of frequency usually come
after the verb “to be” and before a single-word verb
or the main verb
OFTEN, RARELY, SOMETIMES, FREQUENTLY,
OCCASIONALLY, EVER, NEVER, SELDOM,
USUALLY, ALWAYS
4. STILL comes before a single-word verb or the
main verb in affirmative sentences and before the
auxiliary in negative sentences
5. In general, the order of final adverbs is “place”
and then “time”


STYLE
STYLE – VOICE
1. The passive is preferred when the actor is
unknown or unimportant
2. The passive voice is often used when discussing
history
3. Use active voice when the actor is more
important than the action
4. Avoid using active and passive in the same
sentence if possible
5. Use one verb instead of two when possible

STYLE – PARALLELISM
Items in a series must be parallel, that is, they must
have the same grammatical form
Structure joined be AND, BUT, AS, OR, THAN or
ALTHOUGH must have the same grammatical form
WRONG: Taking the bus can be as costly as to take a
plane
RIGHT: Taking the bus can be as costly as taking a
plane

STYLE – WORDINESS
A general rule in English might be that “shorter is
better”. That is, when the same idea can be
expressed directly in fewer words, choose the shorter
version.
1. Avoid unnecessary passive constructions
2. Avoid unnecessary relative clauses where an
adjective, participle phrase, prepositional phrase
or appositive is enough
The tall man bought the car

3. Be as direct as possible
It was an important discovery
(Not: It was a discovery of great importance)
4. Avoid redundancy
She returned on Monday
(Not: She returned back on Monday)

STYLE – SUBSTANDARD
1. “ain’t” should not be used as negative
form of “to be”
2. “anywheres, nowheres, everywheres
and somewheres” are incorrect forms of
“anywhere, nowhere, everywhere,
somewhere”
3. “alright” is an incorrect form of “ all
right”
4. “kind of a “ and “sort of a” are incorrect
forms of “kind of” and “sort of”
5. “mad” should not be used to mean angry
(Mad means insane, crazy)
6. “off of” is an incorrect for of “off”
7. “suspicion” is a noun and cannot be
used as a verb. The correct verb form is
“suspect”
8. “The reason is because” is an incorrect
form of “the reason is that”
9. “is where” and “is when” are incorrect
ways of defining the meaning of a word
10. “different than” is an incorrect form of
“different from”

STYLE – USAGE
BETWEEN is used with two persons pr things
AMONG is used for three or more persons or
things
AMOUNT is used with non-count nouns
NUMBER is used with count nouns
IN is used with non-motion verbs
INTO is used with verbs of motion
He is waiting in the kitchen
He ran into the kitchen
SIT cannot take an object. Sit tells what a person
or thing does for himself or by itself. The principal
parts of sit are SIT, SAT, SAT, SITTING
SET must have an object. Set tells what a person
does for someone or something else. SET, SET,
SET, SETIING
LIE cannot take an object. Lie tells what a person
or thing does for himself or by itself. LIE, LAY,
LAIN, LYING
LAY must have an object. Lay, LAID, LAID
LAYING
RISE cannot take an object. Ride tells what a
person or thing does for himself or by itself. RISE,
ROSE, RISEN, RISING
RAISE must have an object. Raise is what a
person does for someone or something else.
RAISE, RAISED, RAISED, RAISING
CAN is modal verb which means ability

HANGED and HUNG are both correct past participle
forms of the verb “HANG”. But:
HANGED refers to executions (killings) of the
persons
HUNG refers to things

STYLE – WORDS OFTEN CONFUSED
ACCEPT
EXCEPT
ADVISE
ADVICE
ALL READY
ALREADY
ALTOGETHER
ALL TOGETHER
BESIDES = EXCEPT
BESIDE = NEXT TO
CLOTH – is a noun that means “material” or “fabric”
CLOTHES – is a plural count noun meaning
“garments used to cover body”
DESERT – dry area
DESSERT – sweet food
DIFFER FROM = to be dissimilar
DIFFER WITH = to disagree with
EMIGRATE = to leave one’s country to live in
another
IMMIGRATE = to move to a new country
FARTHER = to or at a more distant point in space
FURTHER = to or at a more distant point in time,
degree or quantity
FORMALLY = in a formal way
FORMERLY = previously
HEALTHFUL = good for one’s health
HEALTHY = in good condition of health
ILLUSION = false idea or unreal image
ALLUSION = indirect reference
IMPLY = to suggest without stating directly
INFER = to make a conclusion based on evidence
note directly stated. Only a listener or reader can
infer.
LOOSE = not tight
LOSE = to leave behind by accident, to cease having
unintentionally
PRINCIPAL = chief, very important
PRINCIPLE = chief official
SO = is a conjunction joining a clause of result to a
min clause
SO THAT = joins a clause of purpose to a main
clause
STATIONARY = in a fixed position

STYLE – CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS
both … and
either … or
neither … nor
not only … but also
whether … or
a. Do not use “both…and” for three or more
nouns or adjectives
b. “WHETHER” may sometimes be used alone

STYLE – SUBJECT/VERB AGREEMENT
Singular subjects take singular verbs. Plural
subjects take plural verbs.
1. Subjects are never found in prepositional
phrases
S Prep.Phr.
The price of all these items is twenty dollars
2. HERE and THERE are not subjects. Look after
the verb to find the subject
Here comes the bus
3. The subject also follows the verb in this
pattern ADV – VERB - SUBJ
On the door was a wreath of flowers
Around the corner are several shops
4. Expressions introduced with words such as
“ALONG WITH, BESIDES, LIKE, AS WELL
AS, INCLUDING” do not change the number
of the subject
Mr Jones, along with his wife and six children,
is going to Paris
5. When two subjects are joined by “EITHER ..
OR” or “NEITHER…NOR”, the subject closer
to the verb determines its number
Either my sisters or my mother is going to the
wedding
6. Some words look plural but are singular.
economics, physics, news, etc
7. The subject of a relative clause “WHO,
WHICH or THAT” is singular or plural
depending on its antecedent
Bob is one of my friends who are helping me
paint my house

STYLE – PARTS OF SPEECH
The following suffixes usually indicate
NOUNS
-ion,-sion, -tion
-acy
-ance, -ence
-hood
-ar, -or
-ism
-ment
-ness
-y

ADJECTIVES
-al
-ful
-ly
-ic
-ish
-like
-ous
-y
-ate {it}
-able, -ible

ADVERBS
-ly

VERBS
-ify
-ate {eit}
-ize

STYLE – PREPOSITION IN COMBINATIONS
The following verb plus preposition combinations
always appear as follows and must be learned
together
agree on (smth)
agree with (smb)
approve of
arrive at (or in)
complain about
consent to
comment on
consist of
depend on
laugh at
object to
succeed in
Some other verb plus preposition combinations take
two objects
compare … with (to) …
excuse … for …
prefer … to …
remind … of …
thank … for …
There are many adjective plus preposition
combinations that occur with the verb “to be”
be afraid of
be accustomed to
be aware of
be bored with
be certain of
be disappointed with
be familiar with
be famous for
be frightened by
be happy with
be in favor of
be interested in
be opposed to
be satisfied with
be surprised at (by)
be tired of
be worried about
Some prepositions exist in fixed phrases
according to
along with
as well as
because of
by means of
be way of
in addition to
in case of
in consideration of
in contrast to (with)
in deference to
in hopes of
in lieu of
in pursuit of
in search of
in spite of
in the face of
in terms of

WITH COUNT
NOUNS
WITH NON-COUNT
NOUNS
an + other + singular
noun
(one more)
---
the other + singular
noun
(last of the set)
other + plural noun
(more of the set)
other + non-count nouns
(more of the set)
the other + plural
noun
(the rest of the set)
the other + non-count
nouns
(all the rest)

REVERSED ORDER
Not until … did …
Not only … will
Rarely do …
Rarely have …
Rarely will …

OFTEN GO TOGETHER:
… not only …, but … as well.
… not only …, but also … .
… not only …, … also … .
… not only …, … too.
so … that
such a … that
because of + Noun/Gerund

ADJECTIVES ENDING –ED are used to describe
how you feel about smth

ADJECTIVES ENDING –ING are used to
describe the thing (or the person) which makes
you feel that way