AN INTRODUCTION TO ENGLISH GRAMMAR & LANGUAGE
For example,
We carv"s not a line and we raised not a stone. QUICK REVIEW OF GRAMMAR
Our hoards are little but our hearts are great.
Here, we present some useful rules of grammar.
Do or die. Neither a borrower nor a lender be. You must get by rote all these rules. These will help
I went in but missed you and so I left. enormously in the forthcoming exams.
In these sentences, two or more co-ordinate clauses n ARTICLES
are joined by the conjunction and, but, or and nor. These The Adjectives a or an and the are usually called Ar-
are called Double or Multiple sentences. ticles. They are really Demonstrative Adjectives.
A Double sentence is one which consists of two co- There are two types of articles –
ordinate clauses. 1. Indefinite and 2. Definite
A Multiple Sentence is one which is composed of more A/an is called the ‘indefinite Article’.
than two co-ordinate clauses. The is called the ‘definite Article’.
Use of ‘A’ or ‘An’ : Difference between ‘A’ and ‘An’
Double and Multiple sentences are also called Com-
(i) The form a is used before a word beginning with a
pound sentences.
consonant, or a vowel with a consonant sound :
There are four different kinds of Dobule and Multiple a man, a hat, a cat etc.
sentences composed of — a university, a European, a one way street.
(i) two or more Simple sentences. (Vowel with a consonant sound)
For example, (‘u’ is a vowel but the pronunciation of the ‘University’
is / starts with a consonant sound)
We make our fortunes and we call them fate.
(ii) The form an is used before words beginning with a
(ii) two or more Complex Sentences. vowel (a, e, i, o, u) or words beginning with a mute h :
For example, an elephant, an orange.
A custom officer discovered a passenger who had an apple, an island
hidden a watch in his inside pocket and the lat- an hour
ter made matters worse by trying to bribe the [‘h’ is a consonant, but it is mute. The word ‘hour’ be-
officer who happened to be very honest. gins with a vowel sound. The pronunciation of ‘hour’ is
/ our]
(iii) a Simple Sentence and a Complex Sentence.
(iii) ’An’ is used before individual letters spoken with a vowel
For example, sound :
He is poor but I know that he is honest. an S.D.O., an M.P., an L.L.B., an M.A.
(iv) a Complex Sentence and a Simple Sentence. But we use, a B.D.O., a B.A.
For example, (Consount letter & Consonant Sound)
Use of A/An :
I told them why I stole it but they laughed at me.
A/An is used :
The nature of Double and Multiple Sentences is not, (a) Before a singular countable (i.e. of which there is more
however determined by the number of Subordinate Clauses than one) when it is mentioned for the first time and
in them but by the number of Co-ordinate Clauses a sen- represents no particular person or thing).
tence contains. a cat, a dog, a visa, a flat, an ice-cream.
A Double or Multiple predicate with their Single Sub- (b) We can also use a/an to talk about any one member of
ject makes the sentences Double or Multiple and not a class.
Simple. A doctor, a car, a spider etc.
For example, (c) With a noun complement. This includes names of pro-
fessions :
The boy heard, judged and decided cases (Mul- (d) In certain expressions of quantity : a lot of, a couple of,
tiple sentence). a great many, a dozen (but one dozen is also possible)
Note : (i) A Double or Multiple subject does nto neces- a great deal of.
sarily make a sentnece Double or Multiple. (e) In the vague sense of a certain; A Salman Khan is sus-
For example, pected by the
̄ police.
Jack and Jill went up the hill (simple sentence)
(=a certain person named Salman Khan)
(ii) Who, which and where when used in a continuative (f) To make a common noun of a proper noun; as,
sense (who = and he, which = and it, where = and there) A Daniel came to Judgement! (A Daniel = a very wise
are treated as Co-ordinating conjunctions and so when man)
they join a cause to the Main or Principal clause, the sen- (g) With certain numbers :
tence becomes a Compound (Double or Multiple) sentnece. a hundred, a thousand
For example, Before half when half follows a whole number.
I was waiting for a friend who came soon. 1
1 kilos = one and a half kilos or a kilo and a halfg.
I paid him two shillings which was all I had with 2
me. (h) In expressions of price, speed, ratio : 5 Rs. a kilo,
I went to the station where I bought a ticket. sixty kilometres an hour. Four times a day.
SEE–83