The Grammar Page

This link below will give you basic grammar information. All you need to know about Articles, Tenses, Direct/indirect speech, sentences, subject-object-predicate. You name it, you got it here.It's all here!


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Articles

English language has two articles, “the and a/an”. An article is used for a noun. An article like an adjective modifies a noun.

For example, a book, the book, a cup, the cup, an umbrella, the umbrella
The article “the” is called definite article and the article “a/an” is called indefinite article.

Types of Articles

There are two articles in English language.

1. Indefinite article: a/an
2. Definite article: the

An article is used before a noun or an adjective modifying a noun.

                         
                           Definite Article: (the)

The definite article "the" is used for a definite, specific or particular noun.

Example. He bought the shirt.

The article “the” before the noun “shirt” in above sentence means that the shirt, he bought, is a specific or particular shirt and not any shirt.

                          Indefinite Article: (a/an)

The definite article “a/an” is used for indefinite, non-specific or non-particular (common) noun.

Example. He bought a shirt.

The article “a” before shirt in above sentence means that the shirt he bought is any shirt and not a specific shirt.

Rules for using Indefinite Article (a/an)

The article form “a” is used before a word (singular) beginning with a consonant, or a vowel with a consonant sound.
e.g. a book, a cat, a camera, a university, a European

The article form “an” is used before a word (singular) beginning with a vowel (a, e, i, o, u) or consonant with vowel sound (or beginning with mute h ).
e.g. an apple, an elephant, an umbrella, an hour, 

1. Before a singular noun which is countable
    e.g.  He bought a book
            She is eating an apple.

2. Before a singular noun which refers to a class of things.
     e.g.  An orange is rich in vitamins.

3. Before a name of a profession
    e.g. She wants to be a doctor
           He is an engineer.

4. For certain expressions of quantity
    e.g. a lot of, a few, a couple, a dozen

5. For certain numbers.
    e.g. a hundred, a thousand, a million

6. Before a singular, countable noun in exclamation.
    e.g. What a beautiful flower!
           What a nice shirt!
7. Article a/an is not used before uncountable nouns
    e.g. water, milk, sand etc

Rules for using definite Article (the)

The article “the” can be used both before a singular and plural noun according to the following grammatical rules. e.g. the book, the books

1. Before the place, object or group of object which is unique or considered to be      unique and geographical region and points on globe.

     e.g. the earth, the moon, the sky, the stars, the north pole, the equator

2. For a noun which becomes definite or particular because it is already mentioned     and is being mentioned a second time.

    e.g. The teacher helped a student and the student became happy.

3. For a noun made specific or definite in a clause or a phrase.

    e.g. The old lady, The girl with blue eyes, The boy that I saw, The nice red shirt

4. Before superlatives, and first, second,.. etc, and only

    e.g. The best day, The only method, the second month,

5. Before a phrase composed of a proper and common noun

    e.g. The New York city, The river Nile, The library of Congress

6. Before the names of organizations

    e.g. The Association of Chartered Accountants, The World Health Organization

7. Before names of scientific principles, theories, laws etc. e.g. the Pythagorean theorem, the laws of Newton, The Fahrenheit Scale. But no article will be used for      these names if written in forms like, Newton’s Law, Dalton’s Law of Partial      Pressures, Hook’s Law of Elasticity

8. Article “the” is not used for names of universities if written in forms like Oxford University, Yale University, Columbia University. But article “the” is used if names      of university are written in forms like The University of Oxford, The University of Yale, The University of Toronto.  

9.  Article “the” is not used for names of countries of places. e.g. New York, America, Mexico, Japan, London. But article “the” is used for a name, if it expresses a group of place, states, or land. e.g. The United States, The Philippines, The Netherlands

DIRECT-INDIRECT SPEECH

Table for change in tense of reported speech for all TENSES.

     TENSE CHANGE - IN - INDIRECT SPEECH
     Present simple tense into Past simple
     Present Continuous tense into Past continuous
     Present Perfect tense into Pas perfect
     Present Perfect Continuous into Past perfect continuous
     Past simple into Past Perfect
     Past Continuous into Past Perfect Continuous
     Past Perfect into Past Perfect
     Future simple, will into would
     Future Continuous, will be into would be
     Future Perfect, will have into would have

Examples.

DIRECT SPEECH	INDIRECT SPEECH
PRESENT TENSE
PRESENT SIMPLE changes into PAST SIMPLE
He said, “I write a letter” She said, “he goes to school daily” They said, “we love our country” He said, “he does not like computer”	He said that he wrote a letter. He said that she went to school daily. They said that they loved their country He said that he did not like computer.
PRESENT CONTINUOUS changes into PAST CONTINUOUS
He said, “he is listening to the music” She said, “I am washing my clothes” They said, “we are enjoying the weather” I said, “it is raining” She said, “I am not laughing”	He said that he was listening to the music. She said that she was washing her clothes. They said that they were not enjoying the weather. She said that she was not laughing.
PRESENT PERFECT changes into PAST PERFECT
She said, “he has finished his work” He said, “I have started a job” I said, “she have eaten the meal” They said, “we have not gone to New York.	She said that he had finished his work. He said that he had started a job. I said that she had eaten the meal. They said that they had not gone to New York.
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS changes into PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
He said, “I have been studying since 3 O’clock” She said, “It has been raining for three days.” I said, “She has been working in this office since 2007”	He said that he had been studying since 3 O’clock. She said that it been raining for three days. I said that she had been working in this office since 2007.
PAST TENSE
PAST SIMPLE changes into PAST PERFECT
He said to me, “you answered correctly” John said, “they went to cinema” He said, “I made a table” She said, “I didn’t buy a car”	He said to me that I had answered correctly. John said that they had gone to cinema. He said that he had made a table. She said that she had not bought a car.
PAST CONTINUOUS changes into PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
They said, “we were enjoying the weather” He said to me, “ I was waiting for you” I said, “It was raining” She said, “I was not laughing”	They said that they had been enjoying. He said to me that he had been waiting for me. I said that it had been raining. She said that she not been laughing.
PAST PERFECT changes into PAST PERFECT (tense does not change)
She said, “She had visited a doctor” He said, “I had started a business” I said, “she had eaten the meal” They said, “we had not gone to New York.	She said that she had visited a doctor. He said that he had started a business. I said that she had eaten the meal. They said they had not gone to New York.
FUTURE TENSE
FUTURE SIMPLE TENSE WILL changes into WOULD
He said, “I will study the book” She said, “I will buy a computer” They said to me, “we will send you gifts” I said, “I will not take the exam”	He said that he would study the book. She said that she would buy a computer. They said to me that they would send you gifts. I said that I would not take the exam.
FUTURE CONTINUOUS TENSE WILL BE changes into WOULD BE
I said to him, “ I will be waiting for him” She said,” I will be shifting to new home” He said, “I will be working hard” He said, “he will not be flying kite”	I said to him that I would be waiting for him. She said that she would be shifting to a new home. He said that he would be working hard. She said that he would not be flying kites.
FUTURE PERFECT TENSE WILL HAVE changes into WOULD HAVE
He said, “I will have finished the work” She said, “they will have passed the examination” He said, “I will have gone”	He said that he would have finished the work. She said that they would have passed the examination. He said that he would have gone.

Note: The tense of reported speech may not change if reported speech is a universal truth though its reporting verb belongs to past tense.

Examples.
       Direct speech: He said, “Mathematics is a science”
       Indirect Speech: He said that mathematics is a science.
       Direct speech: He said, “Sun rises in east”
       Indirect Speech: He said that sun rises in east. 

(Tense didn't change because reported speech is a universal truth thought its reporting verb belongs to past tense)

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