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The Grammar Logs # 352 |
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| QUESTION |
I have a question concerning verb agreement. Which one of the two sentences is correct? Can you please explain? Thank you in advance!
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| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
Little Egg Harbor Twp., New Jersey  Sat, Oct 2, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| The adjective clause "that ____ not completed during the week" is modifying the word that is closer to it, "classwork," which is singular, and the relative pronoun "that" refers to "classwork." You want the singular verb, "was." If you mean to say that the attached papers were not completed, you should put the modifier closer to that word: "The attached papers, which were not completed during the work, were classwork." |
| QUESTION |
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| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Burke, Virginia Sat, Oct 2, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| The course will be helpful in what? "The teaching," right? And it's teaching that belongs to me, so it's "my teaching." See the section on Gerunds for further help. (I think I would put that word "successfully" at the end of that phrase.) |
| QUESTION |
| Is it proper to start a sentence with "More importantly, ......" or should it be "More important, ......" |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Horsham, Pennsylvania Mon, Oct 4, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| If it can be clearly established that the modifying phrase is meant to modify the verb in the following sentence, then "more importantly" would make sense; otherwise, "more important" makes sense. Reading Burchfield, one gathers that editors have never particularly liked either one of these phrases — mostly because it's seldom clear what's getting modified by the phrase. Burchfield says that these phrases "must now be considered useful acquisitions to the language, though it should be noted that strong objections were raised to both uses (esp. more importantly) in the 1970s and 1980s." Authority: The New Fowler's Modern English Usage edited by R.W. Burchfield. Clarendon Press: Oxford, England. 1996. Used with the permission of Oxford University Press.
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| QUESTION |
| Is it correct to use the word littler? If so, when do you use it? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Jonesboro,Arkansas Mon, Oct 4, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| If some said "Joe has little feet.", someone else could say "Sarah's are littler." But they would probably say "Sarah's are smaller." and everyone would be happy. There's nothing wrong with "littler," but people think it's odd (perhaps because it's a bit hard to say?), so you're better off with "smaller." |
| QUESTION |
| Isn't it true that some verbs are incorrect grammatically without helpers? for example, a bank statement doesn't "generate"; it "is generated." My contention is that without "is" in this example, the reader expects a direct object to follow. True or false? sorry if this is already covered; I didn't see it |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Dayton, Ohio Mon, Oct 4, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Yes, but someone (or maybe a computer) generated the bank report. It isn't a matter of being right or wrong with a helper or not, it's a matter of whether it takes an object or not. Your linking verbs never take objects when they're acting as linking verbs: "He is a teacher." "She looks odd to me." More often than not, though, a verb can be either intransitive — "The building collapsed." — or intransitive — "Godzillah collapsed the entire building." |
| QUESTION |
| Give one of the enclosed reference forms along with an envelope to each of the three individuals who 'has' or 'have' agreed to recommend you. Would has or have be correct here? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| San Angelo, Texas Mon, Oct 4, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| This response has been changed, thanks to an observation by a reader from Minneapolis. If we reconstruct this sentence to read, "Of the three individuals who have agreed to recommend you, give one of the enclosed reference forms along with an envelope to each. . .", you can see why we want the plural verb have here. Not that we would ever write the sentence in that order, but it does help us see which verb has to agree with what subject. |
| QUESTION |
| When do we use 'as' after the verb 'appoint'? Is it correct to say "She is appointed the chairlady of the class association." or should we say "She is appointed as the chairlady of the class association."? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Somewhere, China Mon, Oct 4, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| There's no reason to insert "as" in that construction. It will suffice nicely to write "She was appointed chairperson of the class association." (Use "chairlady" if you must.) |
| QUESTION |
| What is the difference in using an action verb with "to be" when giving written instructions? Such as, "These coats are taken to the cleaners." vs. "These coats are to be taken to the cleaners." |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Akron, Ohio Wed, Oct 6, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| The "to be" seems to add a bit more directiveness to the sentence, doesn't it? With "These coats are taken to the cleaners," anyone could do it, anytime. I'm simply describing that something is going to take place; I might even do it myself. With "These coats are to be taken to the cleaners," I'm appointing someone to do it, and probably at a specific time or by a specific deadline. It's an interesting distinction. |
| QUESTION |
| Are the verbs "going" and "doing" linking verbs? I am asking because I am not sure if I should use "good" or "well" when saying, "I am doing good (well) today." If I do use "good," people could get the impression that I am doing kind things for others---not that that is bad. Also, do I say, "Things are going good (well)"? Thanks for your time. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Milwuakee, Wisconsin Wed, Oct 6, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| I agree with what you say about "doing good" — it suggests that you're committing random acts of kindness. Which means, I think, that the verb is acting as a linking verb, but that "well" and "good" mean different things in this context. On the other hand, I don't think we use "good" with "are going," though, which suggests that it requires the adverb "well" — so it's not behaving like a linking verb, at least not in that context. |
| QUESTION |
| How can I explain to my students that even when the verb "to be" is followed by an adverbial complement, it is still a linking verb?. This seems to go against what they have been previously taught. ex: Mary is at home. John is here. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Mexico City, Mexico Wed, Oct 6, 1999
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Indeed, you're right, and I have to admit I'd never thought of that. We usually think of linking verbs as connecting the subject to another noun — "Joe is a student at CCTC." — or to an adjective complement: — "Joe is brilliant." But when the complement tells us where or when or under what conditions the verb (a form of "to be") prevails, it is acting adverbially (as in "at home" and "here"). I suppose that doesn't answer your question about how to explain this, but I guess I can encourage you to have faith in your assertion.
Dan, from Hagerstown, Indiana, writes:
And I would add: |
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