GES 101: USE OF ENGLISH.

ADVERBS
What is an adverb?
Adverbs adjust the meaning of verbs. They are mostly formed from adjectives. When you
add ‘ly’. They usually modify the meanings of verbs and this is done when clarify what the verb
is saying.
Example: The choir sings- this may not really bring that how the choir sang. When we
add-‘graciously’- which is an adverb, we are able to know or imagine how the choir sang.
TYPES OF ADVERBS
ADVERBS OF TIME
They categorically state the time of the action, which the verb is talking about.
Examples:
a. They will appear soon.
b. The boy wept yesterday.

ADVERBS OF PLACE
These types mention the place where the action, the verb; happened.
Example:
a. The accident happened in Lagos
b. His father is reading in the library
c. Bade is not there.

ADVERBS OF MANNER
They mostly describe in what manner the action occurred as the verb said.
These types of adverbs always answer the question ‘how’ in a sentence.
Example:
i. He walked to school slowly
ii. Bisi washed the clothes quickly.
iii. The people shouted loudly.

ADVERB OF FREQUENCY
They tried to describe how frequent an action or event is.
Example:
By using; often, seldom, frequently, regularly, usually, always, occasionally, rarely,
generally, hardly, never, barely.

ADVERBS A INTENSIFIERS
Adjectives are intensifiers by these adverbs- very, too, entirely, so, entirely, greatly,
much, extremely, a little, highly, fairly, partially, totally.
Examples:
i. He is very busy
ii. Food is highly expensive
iii. The teacher is too strict
iv. My sister is partially right
v. The wife is totally obedient
We can also get adverbs by including suffix like ‘ward’ and ‘wise’ to words.
Examples:
i. The car moved backward
ii. The chalk rolled downward
iii. Bola danced well, likewise Titi.

ADVERBS CAN BE COMPARED

We can compare adverbs like adjectives. ‘er’ and ‘est’ can be added to words.
Examples:
Early earlier earliest
Soon sonner sonnest
Quick quicker quickest

Exemptions:
Often more often most often
Also:
Carefully more carefully most carefully
Beautiful more beautiful most beautiful

COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE ADVERBS

 You can form these types of adverbs with the use of ‘less’ and ‘east’ from
adjectives.
Examples:
Often, less often least often
Beautifully less beautifuly least beautifully

IRREGULAR ADVERBS
These are also irregular adverbs like we have in verbs.
Irregular comparative superlative adverbs
Far farther farthest
Little less least
Much more most
Badly worse worst

Adverbs without comparative or superlative degrees

Some adverbs cannot be compared as we have in absolute adjectives.
Examples:
Back so yes
Before thus whenever
Here past
Never how
Then not
There no
This very
Compound Adverbs that have ‘ly’ forms. 'ly' help in modifying the next word when
added to an adverb. Thus, you don’t have to hyphenate.
Examples:
a. A badly bent rod has been used - A rod that is badly bent has been used.
b. A jointly bought car is sold - A car that is jointly bought is sold.

Compound Adverbs without ‘ly’.

These types of adverbs without ‘ly’ are hyphenated.
Examples:
i. The church provided a soul-winning purpose
ii. The blood-shot eye is treated
iii. The sugar- coated nut is bad.

ADJECTIVES
An adjective is considered as a major part of speech in a sentence. It is usually defined as
a describing word.
Mostly it tells us something important about a noun. It can be alone or may possess
modifiers. It represents the head in any adjectival phrase.
Its syntactic functions:
Adjectives can function as
(1) Subject Compliments
Examples:
i) She is big
ii) He is foolish
(2) Object complement:
Examples:
i. He made her sad
ii. They discovered her useful
(3) Object complement of subordinate clause.
Examples
i .We rated what you work wonderful

(4) Adjectives that can function as the head of a noun phrase

Examples
i . The wicked live in agony.
ii. The blind have no regard for the dark
iii. The oldy have a need to ask for helper.

Attributive Function of Adjectives:

Some adjectives are used to attribute quality to the noun.
Examples:
i. An old friendship
ii. A new friendship
In those sentences, what is old and new, is the friendship and not the people involved.
EMPHATIC ADJECTIVES
These types too can only be used in attributive forms.
Examples:
i. A real barber
ii. A perfect tailor
iii. A transparent lie

AMPLIFIED ADJECTIVES
These when not used inherently within the context of a sentence , also function in
attributive manner.
Examples:
I. Her sincere self
ii A weak husband
iii. A peaceful night

PREDICATIVE ADJECTIVE.
These are always like the object of the sentence. They most times act like adverbs and
verbs.
Examples
He is tired
She is afraid
This holiday seems long
His stand is understandable

POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES
They notify possession.
Examples:
i. That is my car
ii. I sent your money to her
iii. Help give his book to him

INTERROGATIVE ADJECTIVES
They are usually linked to questions.
Examples: what, which, whose
i. Which dress did you buy for her
ii. Whose car is this?
iii. What address is hers?

DEMONSTRATION ADJECTIVES
These types of adjectives play specific roles in the sentences where they find themselves.
Examples:
i. That lady has a goal
ii. Those gardeners are hardworking
iii. This teacher is a woman of integrity

NUMERICAL OR QUALITATIVE ADJECTIVES

They most of the time signify the number of the noun they modify or qualify.
Examples:
i. She has five houses
ii. They met ten politicians at the gate
iii. We have twenty horses

COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE FORMS OF ADJECTIVES

These types are used when comparing two things. ‘e’r is added to the adjectives to form
comparative ones.
Examples:
i. Smaller cars are better than the trailers
ii. I had a longer sleep this night, than last night.
iii. In the superlative form, the adjective is used to compare three or more things.
 The ‘est’ is just added to simple adjectives to form the superlative ones.
Example:
i. This is the strongest animal on earth
ii. This is the sweetest food I have ever eaten.
When a adjective is long , it is not easy to take the ‘er’ or ‘est’. Such as difficult ,comfortable,
grateful, durable,. It is convenient to add 'more' or 'most in their comparative forms.
Examples:
More comfortable
Most comfortable
More grateful
Most grateful
More durable
Most durable

NEGATIVE COMPARISONS
When the comparative forms of some adjectives needed to signify that a thing is not
available in the other, they usually use 'less' and in the superlative, it is indicated by 'least'.
Examples:
Comparative Superlative
i. That examination is less difficult This is the least difficult examination I have
than the last one ever taken
ii. Deborah is less beautiful than Bola is the least beautiful out of the three girls
Gloria

Comparative and Superlative Formation Rules

These are rules to forming both the comparative and the superlative adjectives.
The basic rules to when to add ‘er’ and ‘est’ and when to use ‘more’ and ‘most’.

1st Rule: One Syllable Adjectives

If the positive form of the adjective is one syllable, ‘er’ should be added or ‘est’.
Examples:
Long longer longest
 Sad sadder saddest
Short shorter shortest

2nd Rule: Adjectives ending with ‘ly’

When the positive form of an adjective is of one or two syllables and has at its end the
‘y’, it has to be changed to ‘I’ and ‘er’ or ‘est’ is later added to it.
Examples:
Lazy lazier laziest
Lovely lovelier loveliest
Dry drier driest

3rd Rule:
With the other adjectives that are of more syllables that is , of more multi-syllablic forms,
'more' or 'most'should be added.
Examples:
grateful more grateful most grateful
intelligent more intelligent most intelligent
beautiful more beautiful most beautiful

4th Rule:
Some adjectives are ‘irregular’. They form their comparatives and superlatives
differently.
Examples:
bad worse worst
Late later latest
Little less lesser / littler least littlest
Many) more most
Much)

ABSOLUTE ADJECTIVES
In the cases of these adjectives, their quality has been expressed to the highest. In this
wiser, they do not appear in the comparison forms.
 Examples:
Unique final single
Empty square wrong
Parallel straight perfect
Endless dead

If at all you will want to compare absolute adjectives, make use of ‘nearly’.
Do not say my ruler is straighter than yours.
You can say , it is more nearly nearly straight than yours.

COMPOUND ADJECTIVES
Compound adjectives are made up to two or more words that function as one. They are
most times written as a word.
Examples:
Commonsense easygoing
Timetable homemade
Handwritten timesaving
Handshake

HYPHENATED COMPOUND ADJECTIVES

Right – handed
High – ranking
Time- consuming
Half – bake
Clear – cut
Left – handed

ADJECTIVES USED AS UNIT OF MEASURE

These are adjectives formed by adding a number , with words of measure.
Examples:
A one –pound flesh
An 15-egg-crate
1 -100 year old
 NOT HYPHENATED COMPOUND ADJECTIVES
Examples:
Social security code
public relations officer.
Post office box

' Well' with hyphen and 'Well' without hyphen.

'Well' in itself technically , is an adverb. However, in most cases, it is used in sentences
as these.
Examples:
i. Our well –built hose
ii. His well-known car
iii. His well-handled project .

SENTENCES AND SENTENCE TYPES

A sentence is considered to be the largest unit of language structure as we have it in
Grammar or traditional Grammar.
It has the subject and the predicted. A sentence always starts with a capital letter. It will
usually end with a full stop.
According to an expert in the structure of English, S. G. Mckaskill, a sentence is that
collection of words that will always create sense. A sentence must be complete and clear. It
always must have a variety.
 TYPES OF SENTENCES
There are the simple, compound and complex sentences.
These types depend on the number and type of clauses in each of the sentences.

TYPE 1:
SIMPLE SENTENCES
A simple sentence has two parts which are the Subject and the Predicate.
The Subject refers to the names of something. The Predicate is what is said about the
Subject.
The simple sentence whicg is also referred to as the shortest sentence, contains two
words, a Noun ,as Subject and a Verb, as Predicate.
Examples:
i. Babies cry
ii. She ate
iii. Bola is going to church
iv. Chris plays cricket.
The predicate of a sentence may consist of one or more parts that are added to the verbs.
It can be an Object, a Complement and an Adverbial part.

For examples:
Subject Predicate
Verb Object Complement Adverbial parts
Bisi burned her food - on Sunday
You danced only twice
Who bought this car?
Tolu cleaned the room to the edges

TYPE 2:
COMPOUND SENTENCE
 This type of sentence has two or more principal clauses that has equal importance,
grammatically.
If two clauses or two simple sentences are combined , a compound sentences is formed.
Examples:
i. Mummy attends her meeting everyday but she does not get tired.
ii. They fed the dogs and they were satisfied
iii. She is beautiful but cannot dance properly .

TYPE 3:
COMPLEX SENTENCE
This is a type of sentence which contains one main clause and one or more dependent or
subordinate clauses. All these perform the functions of Nouns , Adjectives and Adverbs.
Examples:
a. Here is the place (main clause)
where the boy drowned (subordinate clause )
b. I taught her (main clause)
because she asked (subordinate clause)
c. She swept the floor (main clause)
because it was dirty (subordinate clause)

TYPE 4:
COMPOUND COMPLEX SENTENCE
It is a combination of compound and complex sentence. It is formed with two main
clauses and at least one subordinate clause.
Examples:
1. 1. We came there and took some oranges for the patient who broke his leg in a
race.
i. We came there (main clause
ii. He took some oranges for the patient (main clauses)
iii. Who broke his leg in a race (subordinate clause)
2. 2. Bukky-travelled to Jos and to Sokoto where the competition was to be done.
 a) Bukky travelled to Jos (main clause)
b) Bukky travelled to Sokoto (main clause)
c) Where the competition was to be done (subordinate clause)

TYPE 5:
DECLARATIVE SENTENCES
A declarative sentence is that type of sentence which states a statement of fact. This can
be true or false. These sentences are declarative in character and also pragmatic. They can be
used for making statement (pragmatic) and for asking questions or to give orders.
Examples:
i. You are not intelligent
ii. There is no wise Bully.
iii. John is extremely uninformed
iv. Many judges are impartial

TYPES 6:
IMPERATIVE SENTENCES
It is a sentence which is a complete clause. This complete clause has the main verb
behaving as an imperative one.
Examples:
i. Breathe
ii. Enjoy
iii. Be smart
iv. Be brave
An imperative verb may also include' do' creating emphasis.
Examples:
i. Do enjoy
ii. Do listen
It may also use 'don’t' , to be negative.
Example:
i. Don’t listen
 ii. Don’t enjoy
iii. Don’t dance
iv. Don’t be stupid

Sometimes, the subject ‘you’ is always omitted but can also be used.
Example: (You) dance

TYPES 7:
INTERROGATIVE SENTENCE
This type asks questions. One can use 'interrogation' in place of 'question'. In such
sentence, there is an inversion of Subject and the Auxiliary.
Example:
i. Is anyone here?
ii. What do you suggest?
iii. What is the matter with you?