english grammar

INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS  Consider the following sentences :-Who is there? Who are you? About whom you are thinking? / Who are you thinking about? Whom do you want? / Who do you want? Whose is this book? Which is the house? Which do you prefer, tea or coffee? What is the matter? What do you want? What will all (he neighbours say? It will be noticed that the Pronouns in italics are similar in form to Relative Pronouns. But the work which they do is different. They are here used for asking questions, and are, therefore, called Interrogative Pronouns. In the following sentences the Interrogative Pronouns are used in asking indirect questions. I asked who was speaking. I do not know who is there. Tell me what you have done. Ask what he wants. Say which you would tike best. Again consider the following sentences: - Who gave you that knife? (Nominative) Whose is this book? (Possessive) Whom did you see? / Who did you see?, To whom were you speaking? / Who were y...

RELATIVE PRONOUNS Read the following pairs of sentences: I met Hari. Hari had just returned. I have found the pen. I lost the pen. Here is the book. You lent me the book. Let us now combine each of the above pairs into one sentence. Thus :- I met Hari who had just returned. I have found the pen which I lost. Here is the book that you lent me. Now let us examine the work done by each of the words, who, which and that. The word who is used instead of the noun Hari. It, therefore, does the work of a Pronoun. The word who joins or connects two statements. It, therefore, does the work of a Conjunction. The word who, therefore, does double work-the work of a Pronoun and also the work of a Conjunction. We might, therefore, call it a Conjunctive Pronoun. It is, however, called a Relative Pronoun because it refers or relates (Le., carries us back) to some noun going before (here, the noun Hari), which is called its Antecedent. Let the pupil show why which and t...

REFLEXIVE AND EMPHATIC PRONOUNS When -self is added to my, your, him, her, it, and -selves to our, your, them, we get what are called Compound Personal Pronouns. They are called Reflexive Pronouns when the action done by the subject turns back (reflects) upon the subject; as, I hurt myself. We hurt ourselves. You will hurt yourself. You hurt yourselves. He hurt himself. She hurt herself. They hurt themselves. The horse hurt itself. It will be noticed that each of these Reflexive Pronouns is used as the Object of a verb, and refers to the same person or thing as that denoted by the Subject of the verb. Sometimes, in older English, especially in poetry, a simple pronoun was used reflexively; as; Now I lay me down to sleep. The word self is sometimes used as a Noun; as, To thin own self be true. He cares for nothing but self. He thinks much for self. Emphatic Pronouns Now look at the following sentences:-I will do it myself. I myself saw him do it. We...

DEMONSTRATIVE, INDEFINITE AND DISTRIBUTIVE PRONOUNS Consider the following sentences:-This is a present from my uncle. These are merely excuses, Both cars are good; but this is better than that Mumbai mangoes are better than those of Bangalore. Make haste, that's a good boy. [Here that - one who makes haste.] There is no period in ancient-Indian history so glorious as that of the Guptas. [Do not write, “as the Guptas”] My views are quite in accordance with those of the University Commission. I may have offended, but such was not my intention. He was the representative of the King, and as such (= the representative of the King) they honoured him. The stranger is welcomed as such. That is the Red Fort. It will be noticed that the Pronouns in italics are used to point out the objects to which they refer, and are, therefore, called Demonstrative Pronouns . This, that, etc. are (Demonstrative) Adjectives when they are used with nouns; as, This book is mine. That...

PERSONAL PRONOUNS We may say- Hari is absent, because Hari is ill. But it is better to avoid the repetition of the Noun Hari, and say-Hari is absent, because he is ill. A word that is thus used instead of a noun is called a Pronoun {Pronoun means for-a- noun.} Def.- A Pronoun is a word used instead of a Noun. Read the following sentences :- I am young. We are young. You are young. They are young. He (she, it) is young. I, we, you, he, (she, it), they are called Personal Pronouns because they stand for the three persons. (i) the person speaking. the person spoken to, and the person spoken of. The Pronouns I and we, which denote the person or persons speak-mg, are said to be Personal Pronouns of the First Person The Pronoun you, which denotes the person or persons spoken to, is said to be a Personal Pronoun of the Second Person. You is used both in the singular and plural The pronouns he (she) and they, which denote the person or persons spoken of, are ...

Defination : - An Abstract Noun is usually the name of a quality, action, or state considered apart from the object to which it belongs; as. Quality - Goodness, kindness, whiteness, darkness, hardness, brightness, honesty, wisdom, bravery. Action - Laughter, theft, movement, judgment, hatred. State - Childhood, boyhood, youth, slavery, sleep, sickness, death, poverty. The names of the Arts and Science (e.g., grammar, music, chemistry, etc.) are also Abstract Nouns. [We can speak of a brave soldier, a strong man, a beautiful flower. But we can also think of these qualities apart from any particular person or thing, and speak of bravery, strength, beauty by themselves. So also we can speak of what persons do or feel apart from the persons themselves, and give it a name. The word abstract means drawn off.] Abstract Nouns are formed: (1) From Adjectives; as, Kindness from kind; honesty from honest. [Most abstract nouns are formed thus.] (2) From Verbs:...