Verb forms ending in —ing Help wanted: Punctuation and Capitalization Chapter Small Punctuation Mark, Big Trouble: Using Apostrophes to Show Ownership Apostrophes and ownership Forming singular possessives Forming regular plural possessives Forming irregular plural possessives Shortening Words with Apostrophes Avoiding Common Apostrophe Mistakes Apostrophes in plurals Possessive pronouns Expanding contractions Chapter Pausing for a Rest: Commas The Sound of Silence: Why Commas Matter Making a List with Commas Placing Commas before Conjunctions Punctuating two connected, complete sentences Punctuating other elements of a sentence Placing Commas after Introductory Words Single words and short phrases Longer introductory elements Introductory phrases containing verbs Introductory subject—verb statements Talking to People: Commas in Direct Address Chapter Names for people Where are you?
Names of things Mr.
Capitalizing Titles Titles appearing before a name Titles appearing after a name Titles appearing alone Mom or mom? Grammar in Action Chapter Common Errors Chapter Also, like many of the other commenters I often found the example sentences This book is pretty good for a quick reference on specific rules that you may have trouble keeping straight. Also, like many of the other commenters I often found the example sentences to be silly and irritating after reading one or two chapters in one go. Others may feel differently, though, so it may be worth trying to see if you like it.
Basic English Grammar For Dummies - US, US Edition
Overall I did learn from this book and it would be a good, quick reference to keep around. It won't be the last grammar book I read, though, and I don't know if I'll actually buy it. Mar 11, Nayla rated it did not like it. My God, there is factual information in here, but run far far away from this book. The facts are just bait to get you to run this gauntlet of self-loathing, pointless banter.
This is a grammar textbook written by a grammarian who is so desperate to portray herself as cool, as not-that-grammarian, she incessantly disparages her field, her work, and everything she is interested in. Ms Woods goes so far beyond being self-depreciating you kind of want to muzzle her, fortunately this is a book and yo My God, there is factual information in here, but run far far away from this book. Ms Woods goes so far beyond being self-depreciating you kind of want to muzzle her, fortunately this is a book and you can close it.
I'd be mildly amused to here her protest that that's not what she meant at all, that she really loves grammar, etc, but mostly I never want to read anything she's written again for fear it will taint my love of a subject.
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May 22, Seymour rated it liked it Shelves: This book covers everything in a warm and conversational tone with plenty of example sentences and extra tidbits of information. However, for some reason I find it slightly awkward to use when looking up specific things. I think it is because there are a lot of internal references to other parts of the book, so you have to flip around to get a full understanding of a particular point sometimes. It is probably best read from beginning to end and treated as a course because each chapter builds on This book covers everything in a warm and conversational tone with plenty of example sentences and extra tidbits of information.
It is probably best read from beginning to end and treated as a course because each chapter builds on and refer to the previous chapters. An excellent no-nonsense grammar guide. The style is chatty, witty and each section is scattered with helpful icons such as 'Warnings! Even section headings are fun. Linking Verbs 'the giant equals sign' versus Action Verbs was very helpful, to give one example only.
Recommended for any high school or ESL English teacher. Not to say this was a bad book I just had something better I could use. The book did seem to go on a bit and the jokes from the author at times where a little grating though some where ok.
In the end I realised I had a better grammar book which I brought from an online school which was much more suited to covering the basics of grammar. Hopefully the workbook will still come in handy. I am new to the study or Grammar and punctuation and thought this book was brilliant. It is a treasure to my little collection of books. It has set a foundation that has left me wanting to learn more. May 02, April rated it it was amazing.
English Grammar For Dummies by Geraldine Woods
Great resource for any Language arts Teacher. Humorous and to the point. Apr 13, Mirkojeck jeck rated it liked it.
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Feb 24, Jennie Freestone rated it liked it Shelves: You know, this is truly a great educational book. I just didn't have the patience to read through the whole thing, rather I skimmed most of it. It is however, a great reference book! Jul 13, Mariana Garza rated it really liked it. It was helpful and a light lecture. The author knows her way around the difficult topics. I recommend this book for a quick refresh of school days. Oct 07, Nguyen Quang tung rated it it was amazing. A great start for any grammar enthusiasts who seek a grammar handbook with not-so-sophisticated tips and tricks but being able to drive them dizzy for a while.
Finally I've learnt what adverbs are all about they add an extra descriptor to verbs. Well written, and made the subject interesting. They really should teach this stuff at school. I might have done better at English if I was taught the logic behind sentence construction. I found this very useful.
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I worked through a chapter or two a day, giving me time to take things in. Now I've done that it will sit on the shelf over my desk handy for reference. There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Other books in the series. Dummies 1 - 10 of books. Pronoun Errors Chapter Just Nod Your Head: No Garage, but Plenty of Mechanics Chapter Apostrophes Chapter The Pause That Refreshes: Commas Chapter Dashes, Hyphens, and Colons Chapter Pronouns and Their Cases Chapter Fine-Tuning Verbs Chapter Saying What You Want to Say: Descriptive Words and Phrases Chapter Comparisons Chapter Parallels Without the Lines Part V: The Last Word on Verbs Chapter The Last Word on Pronouns Chapter The Part of Tens Chapter About Geraldine Woods Geraldine Woods teaches English and directs the independent study program at a high school for gifted students.
She has more than 35 years of teaching experience and is the author of more than 40 books, including English Grammar Workbook For Dummies. Book ratings by Goodreads. Goodreads is the world's largest site for readers with over 50 million reviews.