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A Writer's Handbook /
Searchable Grammar Glossary 
To find a definition and example of a common grammar term, browse the links below or enter a keyword or phrase in the search field. Please enter a keyword or phrase.
Absolute Phrase: An expression, usually a noun followed by a participle, that modifies an entire clause or sentence and can appear anywhere in the sentence: The stallion pawed the ground, chestnut mane and tail swirling in the wind. Adjective: A word or phrase that describes, or modifies, a noun or pronoun: The small brown cow leaned against the old fence. Adverb: A word or phrase that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb: The cow bawled loudly. Antecedent: The word to which a pronoun refers: Lyn plays golf, and she putts well. Appositive: A word or group of words that adds information about a subject or object by identifying it in a different way: my dog Rover, Hal's brother Fred Clause: A group of related words that includes both a subject and a verb: The sailboats raced until the sun set. Collective Noun: A singular noun that represents a group of people or items, such as committee, family, jury, trio Complete Sentence: A word group that includes both a subject and a predicate and can stand alone Compound Predicate: A predicate consisting of two or more verbs linked by a conjunction: My sister stopped and stared. Compound Subject: A subject consisting of two or more nouns or pronouns linked by and: My mother and my sister drove home. Conjunction: A linking word that connects words or groups of words through coordination (and, but) or subordination (because, although, unless) Conjunctive Adverb: A linking word that can connect independent clauses and show a relationship between two ideas: Armando is a serious student; therefore, he studies every day. (See 14.) Coordinating Conjunction: A one-syllable linking word (and, but, for, or, not, so, yet) that joins elements with equal or near-equal importance: Jack and Jill, sink or swim Correlative Conjunction: A pair of linking words (such as either/or, not only/but also) that appear separately but work together to join elements of a sentence: Neither his friends nor hers like pizza. Count Noun: A noun with both singular and plural forms that refers to an item that can be counted: apple, apples
The target of a verb that completes the action performed by the subject or asserted about the subject: I photographed the sheriff. Gerund: A form of a verb, ending in ing, that functions as a noun: Lacey likes playing in the street band. Helping Verb: A verb added to a main verb to show variations in its action (do, can, have, will) Indefinite Pronoun: A pronoun standing for an unspecified person or thing, including singular forms (any, each, everyone, no one) and plural forms (both, few): Everyone is soaking wet. Indirect Object: A person or thing affected by the subject's action, usually the recipient of the direct object, through the action indicated by a verb, such as bring, get, offer, promise, sell, show, tell, and write: Charlene asked you a question. Interjection: A word or expression (oh, alas) that inserts an outburst of feeling at the beginning, middle, or end of a sentence. Intransitive Verb: A verb that is complete in itself and needs no object: The surgeon paused. Linking Verb: A verb (is, become, seem, feel) that shows a state of being by linking the sentence subject with a word that renames or describes the subject: The sky is blue.
Main Clause: A group of words that has both a subject and a verb and can stand alone as a complete sentence: My sister has a friend. Main Verb: The verb in a sentence that identifies the central action (hit, stopped) Modifier: A word (such as an adjective or adverb), phrase, or clause that provides more information about other parts of a sentence: Plays staged by the drama class are always successful. Noncount Noun: A noun that cannot be made plural because it refers to an item that cannot be counted: cheese, salt, air Object Complement: A noun, an adjective, or a group of words that renames or describes a direct object: The judges rated Hugo the best skater. Parenthetical Expression: An aside to readers or a transitional expression such as for example or in contrast Participle: A form of a verb that cannot function alone as a main verb, including present participles ending in ing (dancing) and past participles often ending in ed or d (danced) Personal Pronoun: A pronoun (I, me, you, it, he, we, them) that stands for a noun that names a person or thing: Mark awoke slowly, but suddenly he bolted from the bed. Phrase: Two or more related words that work together but may lack a subject, a verb, or both Predicate: The part of a sentence that makes an assertion about the subject involving an action (Birds fly), a relationship (Birds have feathers), or a state of being (Birds are warm-blooded) Preposition: A transitional word (such as in, on, at, of, from) that leads into a phrase such as in the bar, under a rickety table Present Participle: A form of a verb ending in ing that cannot function alone as a main verb but can act as an adjective: Leading the pack, Michael crossed the finish line. Pronoun: A word that stands in place of a noun (he, him, or his for Nate)
Relative Pronoun: A pronoun (who, which, that, what, whom, whomever whose) that opens a subordinate clause, modifying a noun or pronoun in another clause: The gift that I received is very practical. Sentence: A word group that includes both a subject and a predicate and can stand alone Subject: The part of a sentence that names something—a person, and object, an idea, a situation—about which the predicate makes an assertion: The king lives. Subject Complement: A noun, an adjective, or a group of words that follows a linking verb and renames or describes the subject: This plum tastes ripe. Subordinate Clause: A group of words that contains a subject and a verb but cannot stand alone because it depends on a main clause to help it make sense: Pia, who plays the oboe, prefers solitude. (See 14d-14f.) Subordinating Conjunction: A word (such as because, although, if, when) used to make one clause dependent on, or subordinate to, another: Unless you have a key, we are locked out. (See 14d-14f.) Tense: The time when the action of a verb did, does, or will occur Transitive Verb: A verb that must have an object to complete its meaning: Alan hit the ball. Verb: A word that shows action (The cow jumped over the moon) or a state of being (The cow is brown)
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