EXERCISES 1

THE EXERCISES OF MORPHEMES

EXERCISE 1: Identify the number of the morphemes in each of the given words. Complete
the table given below.

1 play 1 11 keeper

2 replay 2 (re- and play) 12 able

3 date 13 unable

4 anteday 14 search

5 hygiene 15 research

6 weak 16 cheap

7 weaken 17 cheaply 2 (cheap and -ly)

8 man 18 cheaper

9 manly 19 rain

10 keep 20 rainy

EXERCISE 2: Identify the bound morpheme(s) in of each of the given words. Complete the
table given below.

1 speaker -er 6 delivery

2 kingdom 7 intervene inter- , -vene

3 phonemic 8 revise

4 idolize 9 dreamer

5 selective 10 undone
EXERCISE 3: Underline the base in each of the given table given below.

1 womanly 6 lighten 11 unlikely

2 endear 7 enlighten 12 pre-war

3 failure 8 friendship 13 subway

4 famous 9 befriend 14 falsify

5 infamous 10 Bostonian 15 unenlivened

EXERCISE 4: Identify the meaning of the affix in of each of the given words. Complete the
table given below.

1 antedate The prefix ante– means ‘before’.

2 replay

3 keeper The suffix –er means ‘a person who ...’.

4 manly

5 unable

6 rainy

7 cheapest

8 subway

9 import

10 maltreat
EXERCISE 5: Describe the types of morphemes in the following sentences:

1. Ann’s boyfriend waited for her for 2 hours

2. He is such a dishonest person. He always tells lies to everybody.

3. We looked through our teacher’s assigments carefully.

4. He is the loudest speaker in the meeting.

5. They needed some bigger paintings for the central hall.

EXERCISE 2
 1. Identify the word classes of the following compounds and how they are formed.

e.g. Taxi driver – Compound noun: N + N

skateboard car sick duty-free

upset update downhill

undertake real estate travel agent

hangover pickpocket roundabout

yellowjacket underrate mind blowing

2. Underline the compound words in the sentences below:

1. My grandfather is coming home for the holidays.

2. I really want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

3. The real estate agent had to take a test to get her license.

4. The business is still family run.

5. She is a part-time worker in a state-owned company.

6. The attorney general holds the power in legal matters.

7. He is the captain of a basketball team.

8. What is your honeymoon destination?

9. I have to take a make-up exam, I’ll be well-prepared.

10. The bridesmaid is even better-looking than the bride.

3. Which of the following compounds are endocentric and exocentric? Identify the meaning.

1. eating apple

2. falling star

3. boat house

4. cat house

5. magnifying glass

6. looking glass

7. jack-in-a-box
 8. turncoat

9. highbrow

10. bigwig

4. Use the following words to form open, closed or hyphenated compound words.

• Sick • White

• Written • Minded

• Washed • Home

• Hand • Well

• Known • Broad

• Hair • Lap

• Half • Right

• Card • Top

• Handed • Cut

• Flash • Sister

EXERCISE 3 (E-LEARNING)
EXERCISE 1: Give as many words with the same bound base as you can, using the given prefixes
and bound bases.
Prefixes
ad− (ac−, at−): to, toward
com− (con−): with, together, jointly, in
de−: from, down, away
dis− (dif−): apart
ex−: from, out from, out of
in− (im−): in, into, within, toward, on
per−: through, thoroughly
pre−: before, in advance
inter−: between
pro−: forward, before, forth, for
re−: back, again
sub− (sup−): under
trans−: across, beyond, through
Bound bases
1. −tain: hold
2. −ceive, −cept, −ceit: take
3. −fer: carry, bear
4. −clude: shut, close
5. −port: carry
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EXERCISE 2: Identify all the possible the suffixes in each of the given words. Complete the table
given below.

1
organists

2
personalities
 3
flirtatiously 3 suffixes −ation, −ous, −ly

4
atomizers

5
contradictorily

6
trusteeship

7
greasier

8
countrified

9
friendliest

10
responsibilities

EXERCISE 3: Each group contains a base and a few suffixes. Make each into a word. Complete the
table given below.

1 −ed, live, −en livened

2 −ing, −ate, termin−

3 −er, −s, mor, −al, −ize

4 province, −s, −ism, −al

5 −ly, −some, grue

6 −ity, work, −able

7 in, −most, −er

8 marry, −age, −ity, −able

9 −dom, −ster, gang

 10 −ly, −tion, −ate, affect

EXERCISE 4: Add a derivational suffix to each of these words, which already end in a derivational
suffix. Complete the table given below.

1 expression + −ism = expressionism

2 formal +

3 organize +

4 reasonable +

5 purist +

EXERCISE 5: Add an inflectional suffix to each of these words, which already end in a derivational
suffix. Complete the table given below.

1 kindness + −es = kindnesses (n., pl.) meaning ‘kind acts’

2 beautify +

3 popularize +

4 extinguish +

5 friendly +

EXERCISE 6: Make as many nouns as you can from the given words and noun forming suffixes:

Words Derived words Noun forming suffixes

1. happy ___________________ -hood -
ism
2. friend ___________________ - acy -th
3. girl ___________________ -ance/ence -
ment
4. compose composure, composition -ure -ness
5. shrink ___________________ -age -y
6. discover ___________________ -ity -
ship
 7. supreme ___________________ -ation/ -ition
8. true ___________________
9. move ___________________
10. active ___________________

EXERCISES 3

EXERCISE 1: Identify the different word-formation processes involved in producing each of

the underlined words in the sentences below. The processes mentioned are: acronym,
backformation, blending, borrowing, clipping, coinage, compounding, conversion.

1. We will carpet this room.

2. Could you give me a quick recap on what’s been decided.
3. A day return to London, please.
4. Jane decided to spring-clean her apartment.
5. What are the core rules of netiquette?
6. The tax court concluded that the sale was not a bona fide transaction.
7. Business confidence is on the up.
8. This year the show will be simulcast live to 50 different countries.
9. Did you get my memo about the meeting?

10. You don’t need to button it because it’s got Velcro inside
EXERCISE 2: Draw tree diagrams to illustrate the structure of the following words, assigning
appropriate word class labels (N, A or V) to the roots and to the nodes in the trees, and
identifying heads:

greediness
deconsecration
incorruptibility
enthronement
re-uncover
redecompartmentalisation
cabin crew
cabin crew training
cabin crew safety training
cabin crew safety training manual
airline cabin crew safety training manual
 EXERCISES 4 - SYNTAX
EXERCISE 1: The adverbial word groups are italicized. In the blank, give their syntactic
function in the sentence. Complete the table.

• place

• time

• manner

• concession

• degree

• condition

• frequency

• result

• reason

• purpose

EXERCISE 2: Give the syntactic function to the underlined parts of the sentence.

1. He bought me a nice book.

 2. What seems to be the problem is his behavior.
3. He will come as long as he is invited.
4. My father named the dog Billy.
5. They are talking about me.
6. She is reading the book attentively.
7. Up the hill are trees and flowers.
8. She started early in order not to be late for the meeting.
9. The teacher remained calm although the students are badly-behaved.
10. He said that you always came late.
11. What he told me is what I didn’t want to hear about.

12. I listen to music whenever I am on the bus.

• subject

• direct object (dO)

• Indirect object (iO)

• retained object (rO)

• subject(ive) complement (sC)

• object(ive) complement (oC)

• complement of a preposition (pC) or object of a preposition (prepO)

• adjunct (of time, of reason, of purpose, of place…)

EXERCISE 3: Underline the words that the words in bold modify.

1. One person alone heard the message.

2. Those coeds cheering are only sophomores.

3. The surface, shining and smooth, reflected the sunshine.

4. We started our trip homeward.

5. Her demeanor, excessively prim, annoyed the guests.

6. The two swans floating were black.

7. The conversation afterward was light.

8. This will be a day to remember.

9. The chap sitting in the cubicle is Mary’s friend.

10. This is not the size I ordered.

 EXERCISES – WEEK 9

EXERCISE 1: Underline the subordinate clause and state whether it is an adjectival clause,
adverbial clause or nominal clause.

1. She said that I will have to go.

2. The constable asked me what I was searching for.

3. Although they searched everywhere they could not find him.

4. If the driver had been more careful, the accident would not have occurred. 5. I met a man
who was selling use and throw pens on the bus.

6. Last week I visited some old friends whom I had not seen in years.

7. The girl whose performance enthralled everyone is a trained classical dancer.

8. I talked to the boy who complained of bullying.

9. As it was a hot afternoon, I was sweating profusely.

10. I waited so that I would be able to meet them.

11. Things will not improve unless you do something.

12. Do you know any store where they sell used books?

EXERCISE 2: In the following sentences, determine whether it is a phrase, independent

clause, or dependent clause.

1. Throwing sheets on roads.

2. While stones covered the street.

3. Nobody resides there.

4. Besides old cars and bikes.

5. Unless it snows.

6. Swimming can be fun.

7. That we purchased yesterday. 8. Which disappeared.

9. Walk fast.
10. To jump quickly.

EXERCISE 3: In each of the following sentences, decide whether the bracketed clauses are
finite or nonfinite.

1. [Everybody left just after the ceremony] Finite

Nonfinite

2. [Inviting your sister] was not a great decision Finite

Nonfinite

3. I'll be home around ten [if my train is on time] Finite

Nonfinite

4. [They expect Susan to do all the work] Finite

Nonfinite

5. [Deprived of oxygen], plants will quickly die Finite

Nonfinite

EXERCISES – WEEK 10

EXERCISE 1: Read and analyze each sentence. Write in bold the predicates and
underline the subjects. Draw a line separating the clauses in the sentence. Write the
sentence type on the line.

Example: Mom did the dishes. (simple sentence)

S P
It is cold in the classroom | but it is hot in the hall S P (compound sentence)
S P SP

Coordinating Conjunctions: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.

Subordinating Conjunctions: as, because, although, since, before, when, once, if,
even if, whatever, whenever, during, until, unless, wherever, whether, while, as if,
even if, that
1. When I get home from school, I'm going to take a nap. ________________
2. I got in trouble so I can't go to the party, but it would have been fun.
________________
3. Being alone can be scary unless you keep yourself busy. ________________
4. Mr. Morton, the best reading teacher in the world, taught me sentence structure.
_____________
5. Keith, Carrie, and Kyle bought donuts and ate them down by the river.
________________
6. I left early so that I could get some work done, but I'll be back soon.
________________
7. Crossing the street is dangerous if you don't look both ways before you cross.
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8. If you don't want to study, you should stay home, but you may regret it.
________________
9. Every time I go to mall, I spend all of my money on things that I don't need.
________________
10. Mom said that I can go to the museum with you but I have to be home early.
________________
11. Modern Warfare is a fun game but no game is better than Ms. Pac-Man.
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12. Todd and Nick are eating chips and salsa on a park bench before dinner.
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EXERCISE 2: Identify whether the sentences are simple, complex, compound

or compound-complex. Please underline dependent clauses where it applies.

1. Vampires Dairies is my favorite television show, but I also love True

Blood.

2. The student wiped the white board that was filthy with last week’s
notes.

3. The trendy fashion designer released her new line on Wednesday.

 4. Trina and Hareem went to a bar in Hollywood to celebrate their
anniversary.

5. Wicked Regina cast a spell on the entire city, so the citizens decided
to rebel.

6. While waiting for the paint to dry, Angela went to Home Depot, and
Martin organized the kitchen appliances.

7. After listening to the Kanye West CD, I have new respect for his
music.

8. After the teacher chose groups, John and Sara were selected as
partners for a project, yet Sarah did most of the work.

EXERCISE 3: Practice composing your own sentences given the information

provided. Consider what sentence type will be best to express the information.

1. You are telling the reader about three important qualities of a character in a
book.
Sentence:
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2. You are showing both sides of an argument.

Sentence:
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3. You are wondering about the types of resources available to students at

Van Lang University.
Sentence:
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4. You are describing a sequence of events at your school festival.

Sentence:
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5. You are providing extensive detail about a particular event.

Sentence:
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Excercise 1: Review the derivational adverb-forming suffix [1] and the derivational
adjective-forming suffix [2]:

richly

homelyneatlysoftly

yearly

costly

beastly

deftly

sourly

Excercise 2: ADJECTIVE OR ADVERB

1. The witness testified falsely.

2. Gilbert has a deadly wit.

3. Prudence always behaves with a maidenly demeanor.

4. He tiptoed softly into the room.

5. Jimmy received a weekly allowance.

6. The dear old lady has a heavenly disposition.

7. He spoke quietly to her grandson.

8. What a timely suggestion!

9. What an unmannerly helot.

10. It was a cowardly act.

1. It was a charming spot.

2. It was located by a sweetly babbling brook.

3. It was exciting to watch the fight.

4. From the bridge we can watch the running water.

5. That barking dog keeps everyone awake.

6. He told a convincing tale.

7. The shining sun gilded the forest floor.

8. A refreshing shower poured down.

9. The attorney made a moving appeal.

10. What an obliging fellow he is.