Understanding Words, Sentences and Punctuations (Part 1)

A predicate is a word or group of words that tells us something about the subject of a sentence. For example: “The dog was huge.” The “dog” is the subject. What can we learn about the dog in this sentence? That he was “huge”. “Huge” is a predicate making the correct answer, Answer (a).

A root word is a word that can stand on its own. For example: let’s look at the word “example.” The root word here is “ample” as it can stand on its own as a separate word. “Ample” means a quantity of or enough. When you remove the root word, you are left with “ex.” “Ex” is the prefix to “ample.” Answer (d) is the correct definition of a root word.

A nominative case pronoun is when the pronoun is used as the subject in a sentence. For example: “He broke the vase.” In this sentence, “He” is a pronoun but “he” is also the subject of the sentence making it a nominative case pronoun. Answer (b) is the correct answer.

The subject of a sentence tells us about whom or what the sentence is about. For example: “The ball is red.” The “ball” is the subject. The correct meaning is Answer (b).

An indefinite pronoun is always an adjective. It includes words that do not define a specific number but, rather, points to a general amount with words such as each, some, few, many, another, both and all. Answer (c) is the correct definition for an indefinite pronoun.

A transitive verb is when an object receives an action. For example: “He hit the ball out of the park.” “Hit” is the action. What was hit? The “ball” is the object that was hit and so it received the action. This makes the verb “hit” a transitive verb. Answer (d) is the correct meaning for transitive verb.

An exclamatory sentence is one in which strong emotions or excitement is expressed. The sentence ends with the exclamation (!) punctuation mark. Answer (b) is, therefore, the correct definition we are looking for here.

A declarative sentence is one that makes a simple statement. For example: Nelson tried out for the lead in the school play. A declarative statement ends with the punctuation mark of the period (.). Answer (c) is the correct answer.

A compound-complex sentence is a combination of the compound sentence having two or more independent subjects or clauses and the complex sentence where you have at least one independent clause and one dependent clause. For example: “Veronica married Dillon in March and Sandy married Eric in April so they say.” A compound sentence is when two independent subjects or clauses are linked together with a conjunction so in our sentence here, “Veronica married Dillon in March,” and “Sandy married Eric in April,” we find two independent subjects linked together by the conjunction “and”. Each of these sentences can stand on their own. A complex sentence is composed of an independent subject or clause that is linked to a dependent clause. A dependent clause cannot stand on its own as a complete sentence. Now, in the second half of our sentence we have, “Sandy married Eric in April so they say.” “So they say,” is a dependent clause that cannot stand on its own. The entire sentence is a prime example, then, of a compound-complex sentence. Answer (a) is correct.

A linking verb is a verb that connects the subject in a sentence with the predicate of the sentence. For example: “Mr. Arnold is blind.” In this sentence, “Mr. Arnold” is the subject and “blind” is the predicate. “Is” is the linking verb. Answer (c) is the correct meaning.