GNS 301 USE OF ENGLISH III

GENERAL STUDIES
 Grammatical rules
Clauses and phrases are the building blocks of sentences. A phrase is a group of words
that act as a part of speech but cannot stand alone as a sentence. Clauses are groups
of words that have a subject and a predicate. Independent clauses express a complete
thought and can stand alone as a sentence but subordinate clauses depend on other
parts of the sentence to express a complete thought. A sentence expresses a complete
thought and contains a subject, a noun or pronoun, and a predicate, a verb or verb
phrase.
.

The Phrase
A phrase is a group of related words within a sentence that complements the overall
structure of the sentence. This group of words does not include the subject and the
object. Therefore, a phrase cannot stand alone as a sentence because it (as an alone
part) cannot give a complete meaning.
According to the oxford advance leaner’s dictionary, is defined as a group of words
without a finite verb, especially one that forms part of a sentence.’’ According to the
Cambridge dictionary, a phrase is defined as a group of words that is part rather than
the whole of a sentence. The Meriam-webster dictionary defines phrase as a word or
group of words forming a syntactic constituent with a single grammatical function.
Examples:
i. I saw a joker in the street
ii. The man with the red jacket is my brother
iii. The sports car drove the long and winding road
iv. He was waiting for the rain to stop
v. She eats egg in the morning
A phrase can act as a noun, an adjective, a preposition or and adverb withing a
sentence. The function of the phrase depends upon its construction and place in a
sentence. Based on its function in a sentence, the phrases are divided into various
types:1) noun phrase, 2) verb phrase, 3) adjective phrase, 4) adverb phrase, 5) gerund
phrase, 6) infinitive phrase, and 7) prepositional phrase.

Noun phrase
A phrase that acts as a noun in a sentence is called a noun phrase. It consists of a noun
and other related words (usually determiners and modifiers) which modify the noun.
The noun phrase comprises a noun as head-word and other related words (determiners
and modifiers) may come before or after the noun. The entire phrase acts as a noun in
a sentence.
Examples

 They hired a huge beautiful house

 She bought a decent black shirt
 One of our close relatives never drinks coffee
 A woman in the window shouted for help.

Prepositional phrase
A phrase comprising a preposition and an object of the preposition (noun or pronoun) is
called a prepositional phrase. It may also contain other modifiers. e.g., near a wall, on a
table, in the room, under a tree, at the door etc.
Examples
 The kids were laughing at the joker
 He is sleeping on the carpet
 The teacher looked at the blackboard
 She always speaks in a loud voice
Adjective phrase
A phrase that acts like an adjective in a sentence is called an adjective phrase. Like an
adjective, it modifies a noun or a pronoun. It consists of adjectives, modifiers and other
words modifying the noun or pronoun.
Examples:
 A kid on the roof is looking at the sky
 The boy standing in the shop is my friend
 She bought a beautiful brown chair
 A lady with long hair is walking in the garden
Adverb phrase
An adverb phrase is a group of words that includes an adverb and other modifiers. It
performs all the function of an adverb. It can be placed in any part of the sentence, with
respect to the part of speech they modify.
Examples
  He drives the car at a very high speed
 He was running very fast
 She always speaks in a respectful way
 The kid sat beside her mother
Verb phrase
A verb phrase is a group of main verb and helping verbs (auxiliaries) withing a
sentence.
Examples
o She is writing
o He has passed the exam
o The student must reach on time for the lecture
o They have been playing football since morning
o He is waiting for his friend

Infinitive phrase
An infinitive phrase contains an infinitive (to + 1 st form of a verb) and modifiers or other
related words linked to the infinitive. An infinitive phrase acts as a noun, and adjective or
adverb in a sentence.
Example
i. I like to drive a car
ii. To get success in the exam is the ambition of every student.
iii. The government made a plan to help the poor
iv. She sang a song to please the audience
v. The joker danced to entertain the people.
Gerund phrase
A gerund phrase is a group of gerunds (verb + ing), modifiers and other related words
linked to the gerund. A gerund phrase function as a noun in the sentence.
Examples
i. I enjoy listening to the music
ii. He started writing the report
iii. Sitting in the sun helps body absorb vitamin D.
iv. The crying of the baby disturbed him

The Clause
A clause is a group of related words which consists of a subject as well as a verb.
A clause is a combination of words that includes a subject and a verb. Since it consists
of subject as well as verb, it can stand alone as a small sentence that gives a complete
meaning. Therefore, a clause can also be called a simple sentence. There are two
types of clauses: independent clauses and dependent clauses.
The main/independent clauses
An independent clause (also known a main clause) is a clause that forms a complete,
independent thought. It does not requires anything else to be considered complete, and
so it can stand alone as a sentence. A single independent clause is known as a simple
sentence. It contains a subject and a predicate, each of which can have modifiers.
Example
i. They like staying in a fancy hotel.
ii. The dog is barking.
iii. I am sleeping
iv. The girl in the red jacket ran quickly towards the bus.
v. The wind blows.
The subordinate/dependent clauses
A dependent clause (also called a subordinate clause) is a clause that relies on the
information from an independent clause to form a complete, logical thought. As such it
cannot stands on its own to form a sentence.
Dependent clauses are usually marked by dependent words, such as subordinating
conjunctions, relative pronouns, or relative adverbs, which link them to independent
clauses in a sentence.
Example
i. Whenever I travel, I like to stay in fancy hotels.
ii. A teacher asked question, but no one could answer
iii. They contacted the customer who has not paid the bill
iv. We met a person who could speak many languages.
The subordinate clauses also divided into three categories, they are: noun clause,
adjective clause, and adverb clause.
Noun clause
A subordinating clause that acts as a noun in a sentence is called a noun clause.
It usually starts with words such as ‘that, what, whatever, who, whom, whomever’. It
acts exactly like a noun either at the place of a subject or an object within a sentence.
Examples
i. Whenever we study increases our knowledge.
ii. What you eat determines your body size.
iii. I buy whatever I need.
iv. Now I realized what you said.
Adjective clause
A subordinating clause that acts as an adjective in a sentence is called an adjective
clause.
Like an adjective, it modifies (give more information about) a noun or pronoun in the
sentence. An adjective clause mostly starts with relative pronouns such as that, who,
whom, whose, which, or whose.
Examples
i. I saw a child who was crying.
ii. He hates the people who waste time.
iii. I watched a movie which amused me a lot.
iv. The car, which I like, consumes less fuel.
v. The building, where he lives, consists of many apartment.
Adverb clause
A subordinating clause that acts as an adverb in a sentence is called an adverb clause.
Like an adverb, it modifies a verb, an adjective clause, or another adverb clause in the
sentence. As a modifier, it gives more information about a verb of the main clause in
terms of time, frequency (i.e., how often), condition, cause and effect relation, and
intensity (i.e., to which extent).
It usually uses the following subordinating conjunctions:
 Time: when, whenever, since, until, before, after, while, as, by the time, as soon
as.
 Cause and effect: because, since, now that, as long as, so, so that.
 Contrast: although, even, whereas, while, though
 Condition: if, unless, only if, whether or not, even if, providing or provided that, in
case.
Examples
 i. Call me when you need my help
ii. Unless you avoid sugar, you can’t lose weight.
iii. The patient had died before the doctor came.
iv. You live a happy life as long as you think.
v. I worked in a factory while I was living in London.
The Sentence
The standard definition of a sentence is that, it is a group of words containing a subject
and a predicate and expressing a complete thought. But for this definition to be helpful,
you must be able to recognize a subject and a predicate and understand what is meant
by “a complete thought.”
Subject and predicate
A sentence has a subject (what or whom the sentence is about) and a predicate. The
predicate tells what the subject does or is or what is done to the subject. (for example,
The books were left outside). The simple subject is a noun or pronoun. The complete
subject is this noun or pronoun and the words that modify it. The simple predicate is a
verb or verb phrase (for example, has walked, will have walked). The complete
predicate is the verb or verb phrase and the words that modify or complete it.

 The angry old man in his pajamas was killed.

 He jumped
Types of Sentences
Sentence Types: Simple, Compound, and Complex Your ability to vary sentence
types in your writing will allow you to control the pacing and clarity of your
paragraphs. Using a variety of sentence types also makes for more interesting
reading.

1. Simple sentence
A simple sentence has one independent clause and no subordinate clauses.
Example:
 Old-growth forests in Nigeria are disappearing.
 That lazy boy looks frail.
 The newly admitted student has arrived.
 Mary and Samantha took the bus.
 The train was late.

2. Compound sentence
A compound sentence has two or more independent clauses, joined by
coordinating conjunctions, and no subordinate clauses. Example:
  Old-growth forests in Nigeria are disappearing, and citizens must act.

 Joe waited for the train, but the train was late.

 
 I looked for Mary and Samantha at the bus station in the evening, but they
left the station before noon.
 
 Mary and Salome arrived at the bus station before noon, and they left on the
bus before I arrived.
 
 Mary and Rose left on the bus before I arrived, so I did not see them at the
bus station.

3. Complex sentence
A Complex sentence contains one independent clause and one or more
subordinate clauses. Example:

 Because old-growth forests in Nigeria are fast disappearing, citizens must act
now.
 Because Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station before noon, I did not
see them at the station.
 While he waited at the train station, Joe realized that the train was late.
 After they left on the bus, Mary and Samantha realized that Joe was waiting
at the train station although he was ill.
 I was watching the game not the cake, then I started paying attention to the
oven timer when I smelled smoke.”

Denotation and Connotation

Denotative meaning is the objective (dictionary) relationship between a word and the

reality to which it refers (Crystal, 1987). Connotative meaning, on the other hand, is the

communicative power of a word by virtue of what it refers to (Leech, 1974). The

difference between denotation and connotation is explained by many scholars. Osgood

et al. (1957) distinguish between denotation which indicates the referent of a linguistic

sign and connotation as the diverse emotive reactions to it. Although some words may

be considered to have similar meanings, they cannot be substituted for one another

without changing the message.

Types of meaning

 Conceptual/Denotative meaning
 Associative/Connotative meaning
 Example: Needle; thin, sharp, steel instrument is associated with pain, blood,
illness.
 Economical, Thrifty, Stingy,
 Challenging, Confusing, Difficult

House: A building in which someone lives Neutral

Home: warmth, comfort and affection Positive
Shanty: A small, crudely built shack.
Negative

Summary, Paraphrase and Quotations

The above three ways highlight the approaches of incorporating other writers' work into

our own writing according to the closeness of our writing to the source writing.
 1. Quotations must be identical to the original, using a narrow segment of the

source. They must match the source document word for word and must be

attributed to the original author.

2. Paraphrasing involves putting a passage from source material into your own

words. A paraphrase must also be attributed to the original source. Paraphrased

material is usually shorter than the original passage, taking a somewhat broader

segment of the source and condensing it slightly.

WRITING FOR PUBLICATION

The dissemination of research results and findings is an integral part of the

research process in any field of endeavour. Researchers write to keep records of
their work for themselves, but more importantly for readers and peers who are
expecting a standard form, language and style when reading research papers.
Writing in a scientific style may be hard in the beginning for novices, but clear
communication and concise writing for a scientific audience can be trained (Davis,
1997).

Intentions for paper writing

One may ask why researchers write up what they have been doing or what they are
currently working on. Booth et al. (1995) deliver three obvious reasons to that
effect:
  To remember, because once something is forgotten, it cannot be
reproduced correctly without having written notice.
 To understand, as writing about a subject can only be accomplished by
approaching the subject in a structured way, which itself leads to better
understanding.
 To gain perspective, as writing includes looking at something from different
points of view.

Components of a Paper for publication

i. Preliminaries

a. Title Page
b. Abstract (if required)
c. Table of Contents (if required)

ii. Text

a. Introduction
b. Main Body (Chapters or Sections)
c. Conclusion

End Matter

a. Reference Materials
b. Appendix
c. Parenthetical document
 A. Introduction
An introduction should be an interesting opening to show the main theme
and specific topics of your paper. An introduction usually forms through:
i. A concise and complete statement of your research question or
the general purpose of your term paper.
ii. A justification for your study (the significance)
iii. A background to your research question and a review of the
relevant literatures on it (literature review)
iv. A brief statement of the sources of data, the procedure or
methods of analysis
v. a preview of the organization of the paper

B. Main Body
(Chapters or Sections) Since the topics of research papers are so diverse, it is
impossible to give specific indications of how to write the main body of a research
paper. But, the general rule is that you must organize your presentation in a
logical framework with a clear conceptual linkage among sections and give every
point with substantial support from concrete source.

C. Conclusion
A conclusion should provide a firm ending of what you have discussed in the
paper and, preferably, further to reach a judgment, to endorse one side of an issue,
or to offer directives. A good conclusion usually contains:
 i. recapitulation of the main findings or main themes
ii. statements about the specific values or alternative insights of your
paper for understanding the subject matter
iii. indications of the important relevance to the current circumstance or
future possibility
iv. suggestions for policy in points to your findings

D. Title
The title is the part of a paper that is read the most; it is usually read first and most
often. Electronic indexing services rely heavily on the accuracy of the title to allow
users to find papers that are relevant to their research. There are different types of
title. Jamali and Nikzad (2011) differentiate three different titles:

i. Descriptive titles: which describe what the paper is about (e.g.

‘Investigating the role of academic conferences on shaping the research
agenda’);
ii. Declarative titles: which make a statement about the results presented
in the paper (e.g. ‘Academic conferences shape the short-term research
agenda’).
iii. Interrogative titles: which pose a question (e.g. ‘Do academic
conferences shape the research agenda?’).
iv. Compound titles: which may combine several of the above separated by
colons or question marks (e.g. ‘Do academic conferences shape the
research agenda? An empirical investigation’).
 E. Abstract
Basically, abstract is the last thing to write and first thing to read in research paper.
An abstract comprises a one-paragraph summary of the whole paper. Abstracts
have become increasingly important, as electronic publication databases are the
primary means of finding research reports in a certain subject area today
(Koopman, 1997). Hence, everything of relevance to potential readers should be in
the abstract. According to Day (1983), there are two basic types of abstract viz:

i. An informative abstract: it extracts everything relevant from the

paper, such as research objectives addressed, methods employed
in solving the problems, results obtained and conclusions drawn.
Such abstracts may serve as a highly aggregated substitute for the
full paper.
ii. An indicative or descriptive abstract: rather describes the
content of the paper and may thus serve as an outline of what is
presented in the paper. This kind of abstract cannot serve as a
substitute for the full text.

Reports

A report is an informational work made with the specific intention of relaying

information or recounting certain events in a widely presentable and scrutinized
form. Reports are often conveyed in writing, speech, television, or film. A report is
a document that presents information in an organized format for a
specific audience and purpose. Although summaries of reports may be delivered
orally, complete reports are almost always in the form of written documents.
Kuiper and Clippinger (2013) define business reports as "organized, objective
presentations of observations, experiences, or facts used in the decision-making
process" Sharma and Mohan (2002) define a technical report as "a written
statement of the facts of a situation, project, process or test; how these facts were
ascertained; their significance; the conclusions that have been drawn from them;
and the recommendations that are being made".

Types of reports

 Memos
 Minutes
 Lab. reports
 Book reports
 Progress reports,
 Annual reports, policies and procedures.
 Technical report.
 Academic report.
 Weekly report.
 Business report.
 Scientific report.
 Project report.
 Research report.

Functions of Reports

Reports can fulfil various functions.

 They can be used as controls to ensure that all departments are functioning
properly
 To give information
 To provide an analysis
 To persuade others to act.
  To criticize
 TO PROVIDE SOLUTION

Characteristics of Effective Reports

The characteristics are:

1. Simplicity
2. Clarity
3. Brevity
4. Positivity
5. Punctuation
6. Approach
7. Readability
8. Accuracy
9. Logical Sequence
10. Presentation.

Long and Short Reports

In the professional world, decision makers rely on two broad types of reports.
Some reports focus primarily on information ('what we are doing now,' 'what we
did last month,' 'what our customer survey found,' 'what went on at the department
meeting' what happen to who?). But beyond merely providing information, many
reports also include analysis ('what this information means for us,' 'what courses of
action should be considered,' 'what we recommend, and why' what happen where?)
etc. Unlike long reports, most short reports require no extended planning, are
quickly prepared, contain little or no background information, and have no front or
end matter (title page, table of contents, glossary, etc.). But despite
their conciseness, short reports do provide the information and analysis that readers
need.

Structure of business/technical reports

i. Preliminary Matters

 Title page
 Abstract/Transmittal
 Executive summary
 Table of contents
ii. Body

 Introduction
 Review of Previous Works
 Methodology
 Findings
 Discussion
 Conclusions
 Recommendations

iii. End Matter

 References
 Appendices
 Glossary