Exercise 4
For a second hunt you might look for the simple and complete subjects and predi-
cates in each sentence of the selection.
A Guide to Self-Education
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Noun Forms. Many nouns change their form when they become plural. Com-
monly the plural is formed by adding s or es to the singular. One can usually tell by
the sound whether to add es, as church, churches; fox, foxes; wish, wishes. Nouns
ending in y, preceded by a consonant, change the y to i and add es. For example:
lady, ladies. Some nouns ending in f or fe change the f or fe to v and add es.
beef, beeves leaf, leaves shelf, shelves
calf, calves life, lives thief, thieves
elf, elves loaf, loaves wharf, wharves
half, halves self, selves wife, wives
knife, knives sheave, sheaves wolf, wolves
Other nouns having the same endings add s to the singular. For example: chief,
chiefs; handkerchief, handkerchiefs; safe, safes; hoof, hoofs.
Some nouns ending in o add es to form the plural, as potatoes, buffaloes, tomatoes,
echoes, heroes, Negroes, tornadoes, volcanoes, mosquitoes, vetoes. Others, including
musical terms coming from the Italian add s, as altos, banjos, dominos, halos,
cuckoos, dynamos, folios, pianos, sopranos, solos.
Some nouns change the vowel to form the plural, as man, men; foot, feet; louse,
lice; tooth, teeth; woman, women; goose, geese. Exceptions are German, Germans;
Roman, Romans.
Nouns coming from foreign languages often retain the plural form of the original
language.
alumna, alumnae matrix, matrices
alumnus, alumni focus, foci
datum, data monsieur, messieurs
nebula, nebulae stratum, strata
genus, genera oasis, oases
larva, larvae parenthesis, parentheses
phenomenon, phenomena cherub, cherubim
memorandum, memoranda beau, beaux
madam, mesdames analysis, analyses
fungus, fungi radius, radii
In compound nouns it is the important word that is made plural:
commander-in-chief, commanders-in-chief
man-of-war, men-of-war
father-in-law, fathers-in-law
knight-errant, knights-errant
Exceptions: Knights Templars; menservants.
Here are some irregular plurals to study:
Miss Farmer, Miss Farmers
Miss Farmer, the Misses Farmer
Mr. Farmer, Messrs. Farmer
Mr. Farmer, the Mr. Farmers
Jones, Joneses
5, 5's; a, a's
Mary, Marys
Exercise 5
Choose the correct word in these sentences:
1. Graduates of a men's college are (alumni, alumnae).
2. Nebulae (is, are) observed in the sky.
The Parts of Speech
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3. The girl has a (beau, beaux).
4. The (altoes, altos) sang well.
5. They were (phenomenons, phenomena).
6. We heard the (echoes, echos).
7. Strata (is, are) found in rocks.
8. Give me all the (datums, data).
9. We played (dominoes, dominos).
10. We drew the (radiuses, radii) of the circle.
11. There are three (3s, 3's) in 9.
12. Have you invited the (Misses Freeman, Miss Freemans)?
13. I met both the (Maries, Marys).
14. Both (father-in-laws, fathers-in law) were there.
15. We have two (analyses, analysises) of the water.
Using Nouns and Pronouns. Nouns may be used in three ways as seen in this
sentence:
The man left a book on the boy's desk. The noun man is the subject of the verb
left. The noun book tells what he left and is called the object of the verb. The noun
boy's tells who possesses the desk. The noun desk is object of the preposition on. When
nouns are used as subjects they are said to be in the nominative case; when used as
objects, in the objective case; when used to express possession, in the possessive case.
It must not be supposed that every noun following a verb is in the objective case.
If the action in the verb is carried over into the noun, the noun is in the objective
case; but without the carrying over, it is in the nominative case, as in this sentence:
He is the boy.
Pronouns have the same three cases but the form is different in the different cases
of some pronouns. Here are some:
Nominative Possessive Objective
I mine me
you yours you
he his him
we ours us
she hers her
they theirs them
who whose whom
From what has been said about the nominative case following a verb whose action
is not carried over, the correct use of the pronoun is shown in this sentence: It is I
(he, we, she, they).
Since a preposition is followed by a noun in the objective case, the same would
be true of being followed by a pronoun. It is correct to say: Divide it between him
and me.
WEBSTER'S
New AMERICAN
DICTIONARY
COMPLETELY NEW AND UP TO DATE. PLANNED AND
WRITTEN BY MODERN EDUCATORS AND LEXICOGRAPHERS
ESPECIALLY TO SERVE THE ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS
OF SCHOOL, COLLEGE, AND SELF-EDUCATION AT HOME
Managing Editor
LEWIS M. ADAMS
Editor-in-chief
EDWARD N. TEALL, A.M.
C. RALPH TAYLOR, A.M.,
Author of Self-Education Department and Associate Editor;
Editor "The Home University Encyclopedia," "New American Encyclopedia,"
author of "Vital English"
Simplified Self-Education Treatises on:
GRAMMAR PUNCTUATION VOCABULARY TESTS
WRITING PRONUNCIATION WORDS MISPRONOUNCED
SPEAKING CAPITALIZATION DANGER FLAGS
Illustrated -- Self-Pronouncing -- Synonyms -- Antonyms
This Dictionary is not published by the original pub-
lishers of Webster's Dictionary, or by their successors
1959
B O O K S, I N C .
NEW YORK
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