UPSR Basic English Grammar

NOUNS
A noun is the name of a person, animal, thing or place.
The following are types of nouns:
Proper Nouns:
Examples: Susan, Eric, Lucy, Ahmad, Proton Saga, Johor Bahru, Deepavali, August, Thursday, Christian, Islam, Buddha, Hinduism, China, Korea...
Common Nouns 
Common names
Countable and Uncountable Nouns
Examples:
Countable Nouns 
Singular Nouns: Examples - woman, child, chair, desk, rat, cat, dog, bird
Plural Nouns: Examples - women, children, chairs, desks, rats, cats, dogs, birds
Uncountable Nouns 
Abstract Nouns: Examples - joy, sadness, friendship, truth
Concrete Nouns: Examples - mud, wool, butter, juice

Nouns can also be singular or plural forms.
Nouns
Singular Nouns
A singular noun refers to ONE item.
Examples: a man, a goat, a tree, a lake
Plural Nouns
A plural noun refers to TWO or MORE than one item.
Examples: Two men, four goats, five children, many trees, those lakes...

The following are 8 rules for the formation of plural nouns:
1. Add -s
Examples: girls, cups, cats, stems, tables, beds, flowers, books, balls, fields, pens, pencils, erasers, rulers, cars, bicycles, shirts, trousers, cakes
2. Add -es to nouns ending in -ch, -sh, -x, -s, -o
Examples: 
switch - switches
branch - branches
brush - brushes
box - boxes
fax - faxes
class - classes
address - addresses
cargo - cargoes
3. For nouns that end in -y,
Examples (a) 
change -y to -les: 
army - armies
baby - babies
party - parties
puppy - puppies
Examples (b)
add -s only when there is a vowel before -y: 
boy - boys
key - keys 
tray - trays
4. Change -f or fe to -ves.

Some irregular nouns take on the plural form by first changing the last letter of the word before adding “s.”

Words that end in “f” are a good example of this case.

To make such a word plural, you change the “f” to “ve” and add an “s.”

Examples: 

elf - elves

calf - calves

knife - knives

loaf - loaves

shelf - shelves

wolf - wolves
loaf - loaves

leaf - leaves
life - lives
half - halves
wife - wives
relief - relieves
5. Change vowels in the middle.
Examples:
Goose - geese
tooth - teeth
foot - feet
6. Have the same form in the singular and the plural.
Examples: 
deer
luggage
information
rubbish
7. Always in the plural form.
Examples:
spectacles
scissors
trousers
binoculars
8. Have irregular form in the plural.
Irregular nouns made plural by changing vowels, changing the word, or adding a different ending.
Examples:
man - men
person - people
mouse - mice
child - children
foot - feet
goose - geese
tooth - teeth
louse - lice
cactus - cacti
appendix - appendices
ox -oxen
cod - cod or cods
shrimp - shrimp or shrimps
fish - fish or fishes
quail - quail or quails

Take Note:

Some irregular plural nouns have the same spelling as their singular form such as scissors, pants, bison, deer, and sheep.

And then some animal nouns become plural by keeping the same spelling as the singular form or by adding an s or es.

Examples:

cod - cod or cods

shrimp - shrimp or shrimps

fish - fish or fishes

quail - quail or quails
Nouns ending in -o: -s or -es (depending on the word!)
Examples
Always - ES
potato/tomato - potatoes/tomatoes
hero - heroes
torpedo - torpedoes
echo -echoes
Always - S
stereo - stereos
memo - memos
solo - solos
zoo - zoos
studio - studios
Some can be both!
ghetto - ghettos/ghettoes
mango - mangos/mangoes
motto - mottos/mottoes
tornado - tornados/tornadoes
tuxedo - tuxedos/tuxedoes
valcano - valcanos/valcanoes
Nouns that look plural, but take a singular verb.
Examples:
news - The news was so depressing.
gymnastics - Gymnastics is great for getting in shape.
economics/mathematics - Economics is quite difficult.
Nouns that look singular, but take a plural verb.
Examples:
pants - These pants are too small.
scissors - Where are the scissors? 
glasses - When I last saw your glasses, they were on the table.
VERY irregular plural nouns
Examples:
man - men
woman - women
child - children
person - people
tooth -teeth
foot - feet
vertebra - vertebrae
mouse - mice
goose - geese
Some nouns that do not change
Examples
one sheep - two sheep
one deer - two deer
one fish - two fish
one series - two series
one species - two species
Latin/Greek words: US - I
Examples
alumnus/alumna - alumni
cactus - cacti
fungus - fungi
nucleus - nuclei
stimulus - stimuli
Latin/Greek words: IS - ES
Examples
analysis - analyses
crisis - crises
diagnosis - diagnoses
Latin/Greek Words: UM/ON - A
Examples
bacterium - bacteria
criterion - criteria
curriculum - curricula
datum - data
millennium - millennia
phenomenon - phenomena

Useful links
Irregular Plural Nouns (espressoenglish.net)
Irregular Plurals (with pictures)
English Grammar - Singular + Plural
Speaking English - Irregular Plural Nouns

ARTICLES
Articles consist of indefinite articles ("a"/"an") and the definite article ("the").
Indefinite Articles.
"a"/"an"
"a" 
Used with nouns that begin with a consanant sound or 'you' sound.
Examples:
a bird
a man
a got
a university

"an"
Used with nouns that begin with a vowel sound or a silent 'h'.
Examples:
an apple
an eel
an idol
an hour

Definite article ("the")
Used to refer to a particular person, animal or thing
Examples: 
the police, 
the tiger, 
the bus
Used to show something that is the one of its kind
Examples:
the sun
the moon
Used before a noun that represents a whole class
Examples:
I have a bird.
I feed the bird once a day.
Used with the superlative adjectives and adverbs
Examples:
the youngest child
run the fastest
Used before names of seas, rivers, mountain, ranges, islands, important buildings and musical instruments
Examples:
the Alps
the Taj Mahal
the blue

PRONOUNS
A pronoun is a word that replaces a noun.
Examples:
John is a friendly boy.
He is my best friend.

Type of Pronouns
Personal Pronouns
(a) Subject Pronouns: Examples - I, he, they...
(b) Object Pronouns: Examples - me, him, them...
Possessive Adjectives
Examples - my, his,hers, theirs...
Reflexive Pronouns
Examples - myself, himself, themselves...
Relative Pronouns
Examples - who, whom, whose, which...
Demonstrative Pronouns/Adjectives
Examples - this, that, these, those...

Personal Subject	Personal Object	Possessive Adjectives	Possessive Pronouns
I	me	my	mine
you	you	your	yours
we	us	our	ours
they	them	their	theirs
he	him	his	his
she	her	her	hers
it	it	its	-

Personal Subject:
Used in front of a VERB.
Example: I like him. (like = verb)
Personal Object:
Used behind a VERB/PREPOSITION.
Examples:
He likes me (likes = verb)
Wait for us. (for = preposition)
Possessive Adjectives
Used in front of a noun.
Examples:
Look at my car. (car = noun)
Possessive Pronouns
Used at the end of a sentence.
That car is mine. (mine - at the end of a sentence)

Interrogative Pronouns

We use wh-words to ask questions.

What is used to ask questions about people, animals and things.

What is your name?

What is the weight of the puppy?

What is the title of the book?

We use who to ask about people.

Who likes to eat grapes?

We use where to ask about places.

Where is the museum?

Where can I get a box of flour?

We use when to ask about date and time.

When is your birthday? )

When will the show begin?

We use which to ask questions about objects with one choice or more.

Which colour do you like?

We use why to ask questions about reasons.

Why is the sky blue?

Why is eating vegetables good for you?

We use how to ask questions about ways or manners.

How do we get from here to the library?
How are you doing today?

THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

The simple present tense is used:

(a) to show a repealed or habitual action.

Examples: Nina goes to bed at ten every night.

(b) to state a fact or general truth

Examples: Bees and ants are insects.

The simple present tense is used:

to show a repeated or habitual action
Example: Nina goes to bed at ten every night.

to state a fact or general truth 
Example: Bees and ants are insects.

Subject I you/we/they/ plural nouns	am/base form are/base form	Example: I usually go fishing when I am free„ Babies always cry when they are hungry.
he/she/it singular nouns	is/ + -s/-es/-ies	He usually goes fishing when he is free. The baby always cries when he/she is hungry.

Suitable time expressions:

every day/week

often, always

usually

sometimes

THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE

The simple past tense is used to show an action that began and ended in the past.

e.g. Johan went to Ipoh yesterday.

We visited the orphanage last week.

Subject	Verb	Example
you we they he she it singular/ plural nouns	+ -d/-ed	They moved to Kedah 3 years ago. Xiu Lin called me this morning.
	change letters partly or completely	She felt sleepy so she went to bed early last night.
	remain the same form	I read the news just now.

Suitable time expressions:

last night/month

ago

yesterday

just now

this morning

Take note:

The Simple Past Tense

Used to show that an action began and ended at a particular time in the past

I answered the phone call at 10:00 p.m. last night.

More examples…

He slept at 12:00 midnight yesterday. (sleep – slept – slept - sleeping)

Mother went to the market two days ago. (go – went – gone – going)

Mimi walked to school last week. (walk – walked - walked – walking)

I drank the milk an hour ago. (drink – drunk – drunk – drinking)

She returned to her house just now. (return - returned - returned – returning)

I walked to my office three years ago but now I drive to work. (walk – walked - walked – walking)

Simple Past Tense shows an activity that took place at a given point in time, in the past.

Examples: yesterday, last week, ten years ago, two minutes ago, six days ago.

I visit my grandmother today. (now)

I visited my grandmother yesterday. (past tense)
I shall visit my grandfather tomorrow. (future tense)

  

THE PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE

The past continuous tense is used:

(a) to show an action or two stimultaneous actions going on in the past.

Examples:

 The plants were growing fast.

Susan was reading while her brother was playing badminton.

(b) To show an ongoing past action interrupted by a shorter action

Examples:

I was watching television when the lights suddenly went off.

Subject	Verb	Example
you we they plural nouns	were ' , + -ing verb was J	The baby was sleeping soundly all night. Mrs Liu was cooking while her children were playing chess. They were making a lot of noise when the teacher entered the classroom.
I he she it singular nouns

THE SIMPLE FUTURE TENSE/‘GOING TO’ FORM

The simple future or ‘going to’ form can be used to show a future action.

Examples:

I shall meet you tomorrow morning.

You will get your test results next week.

They are going to watch a film tonight.

Subject	Verb		Example
I/we	shall  will	+ base form	We shall finish all the projects by Friday. She will take a few days off to rest at home. Aisyah will cook chicken porridge tomorrow.
you they he/she/it singular/ plural nouns
I	am are + going + base to form is		I am going to join the club next term. They are going to leave now
you we they plural nouns
			My friends and I are going for a school trip next week. He is going to cook dinner tonight.
he/she/it singular nouns

Suitable time expressions:
tomorrow
tonight
later
soon
afterwards
next day/week

VERB ‘TO BE’

Verb ‘to be’ has three forms in the present: am, are, is

Subject	Verb to be’
I	am	very happy now.
you/we/they/plural nouns	are
he/she/it/singular nouns	is

VERBS

Verbs can be divided into regular verbs and irregular verbs.

Regular verbs

The past tense and past participle are formed by adding -ed or -d (for verbs ending in -e).

Infinitive/ Base form	Past Tense	Particle	Continuous
accept	accepted	accepted	accepting
borrow	borrowed	borrowed	borrowing
escape	escaped	escaped	escaping
follow	followed	followed	following
help	helped	helped	helping
import	imported	imported	importing
joke	joked	joked	joking

Irregular verbs

The past tense and past participle have totally different forms from the infinitive/base form. Some do not change at all.

Infinitive/ Base form	Past Tense	Past Participle	Continuous
arise	arose	arisen	arising
blow	blew	blown	blowing
choose	chose	chosen	choosing
cut	cut	cut	cutting
do	did	done	doing
eat	ate	eaten	eating
run	ran	run	running
see	saw	seen	seeing
wake	woke	woken	waking

CONJUNCTIONS (joining words)

A conjunction is a part of speech that is used to connect words, phrases, clauses, or sentences.  (or)

Conjunction is a word used to connect clauses or sentences or to coordinate words in the same clause. (or)

A conjunction is a word that joins two or more words, phrases, or clauses. Think of them as gluing words. They glue words, phrases, and clauses together.

Conjunctions are considered to be invariable grammar particle, and they may or may not stand between items they conjoin.

Below is several examples of the conjunction words (e.g., and, or, but, because, so, if ..).

Examples:

 ‘and’ - joins two words, phrases or sentences

If you go to the canteen, please buy a plate of noodles and a cup of water.

‘or’ - to show a choice between two things

You can eat the cake or the pie.

‘but’ - joins two ideas that are different

Suzan wanted to enter the contest but her mother said no.

‘because’ - shows reasons

The dress is expensive because it is imported from France.

‘so’ - shows results
Come closer so I can see you better.

PREPOSITIONS

Prepositions are words used before a noun or pronoun to show how the noun or pronoun is linked to another word in the sentence.

The table below shows different types of prepositions and its examples.

(Time, location, Direction, and Other uses)

Prepositions of time
- show when something happens
Examples: about/around, after, at, before, by, during, for, from, in, on, since, till/until,  to  He was born in 1990.

I will be there before August next year.
She was here since last two years.
               

Prepositions of location

Prepositions of location show where a person, animal or object is at.

The prepositions of location are: on, above, in front of, between, against, in, under, behind, beside, at.

Examples:

Sheila puts the bag on the chair.

Sanny hung a picture above the window.

The boy is standing in front of the car.

Rosli sits between Rani and Ani.

The spoon is in the glass.

The girl sits under a shady tree.

There is a cat behind her.

Puan Asiah sits beside/next to Encik Maslan. 
Marina is waiting for her father.
Raju puts the ladder against the wall.

Note: Location - Show where someone or something is.     

The dog rested under the tree.

Examples: above, against, among, at, behind, below, by/beside, between, in, inside, near, on, opposite, outside, under

Prepositions of Direction

Prepositions of direction show the movement of someone or something from one place to another.

The prepositions of direction are: up, out, down, over, to, from, along, across, around. 

Examples:

The boy is climbing up the tree.  

Lily threw the pen out of the window.

The girls run down the stairs.     

Line is going to the library.           

The dog jumps over the fence.

The boy runs across the road.
The boys walk along the beach.

Note: Direction - show which way someone or something is moving towards

She walks to school every day.

Examples: across, along, around, about, down, from, to, into, off, out, over, past, round, through, towards, up       

Other uses - show manner, condition, purpose, method, relationship

The shirt is made of wool.

Examples: at, by, for, from, in, of, with   

ADJECTIVES

Adjectives are words that describe a noun or a pronoun.

It tells us what colour, size or shape the noun is. It is usually before a noun.

The red dress belongs to Anna. (red = adjective, dress =  noun)

That tall giraffe is eating. (tall =  adjective,  giraffe = noun)

Different Types of Adjectives

Colour: yellow, blue, pink, brown, purple…

Size: big, small, tall, short…

Shape: round, oval, square, triangular…

Quality: new, cheap, expensive, sad, happy…

Comparative Adjectives

Positive degree

She is tall/short/fat/slim. (no comparison here)

Comparative degree

Angelina is taller than Kumar. (a comparison between Angelina and Kumar)

Superlative degree

Eric is the tallest of them all. (Comparison among them: Angelina, Kumar and Eric)

Degree od Adjective

Comparative

-compares two objects or people

-adjective + ‘er’ + than

Superlative

-compares three or more objects or people

-adjective + ‘erst’/’most’

ADVERBS

Adverbs show how a person does something.

Examples: Neatly, softly, carefully, soundly and gracefully.

	How? (Adverbs)
Azizah writes her essay	neatly	in the book.
Yusri speaks	softly	to the old lady.
I read the instructions	carefully	before answering the question.
The baby slept	soundly	last night.
Osma sings	gracefully	at the concert.

MODELS

Modals are used with another verb to show possibility, permission or intention. Examples:

Modals	Meaning	Examples
must	obligation	You must come early. You must not litter around.
could	past ability permission possibility	I could never buy the bungalow. Could I sit here? We could go to the cinema this evening.
have to	insistence	I have to go to hospital now.
might	possibility	We might borrow his car next week.
should	obligation likelihood	You should leave this room now. He should be entering the office by now.
would	request past activity	Would you bring the storybook tomorrow? Every afternoon the baby would sleep with her mother.

Modals are used with the base form of verbs. 

They are used to add special meanings like ability, permission, possibility, etc. to the main verbs.

Can/Could

To show ability 

Examples:

He can swim.

Sam could write at the age of three.

‘could’ is the past tense of ‘can’

To request or give permission

Examples:

Can/Could I come with you?

You can/could leave now.

Will/Would
(a) to predict or express a future action 
Examples:
It will rain tomorrow.
They will go to the zoo next Sunday.
He said that he would be busy next week.
('would' is the past tense of 'will')
(b) to make a request or an offer.
Examples:
Will/Would you carry these books for me?
Would you like some coffee.

May/Might

To request or give permission

Examples:

May/Might I borrow your pen?

You may take a short break.

To show possibility

Examples: 

The bus may arrive at any time.

Liza might be ill because she was absent from class yesterday.

‘might’ is the past tense of ‘may’

To express a future action or something that is expected to happen

Examples:

We shall tell Mum what we did yesterday.

They should be on their way already.

‘should’ is the past tense of ‘shall’

To make an offer or a suggestion

Example:

Shall/Should I book the tickets first?

To give an advice or show what is the right thing to do 

Examples:

You should pay attention in class.

We shall/should exercise regularly.

Ought to/Used to
To give an advice or show what is the right thing to do 
Example:
You ought to thank them personally.
We ought to eat more vegetables. 
Used to

To show a past habit 
Example:
I used to go swimming on Sundays.

They used to live in the village when   they were young. 
(‘used to’ is in the past tense)

Must/Has to/Have

Has to – 

To show necessity

Examples:

 She must/has to send her homework by tomorrow morning. 

They had to postpone the trip until next month.

‘had to’ is the past tense of ‘must’ and ‘has/have to’

To show an obligation

Example:

We must/have to follow the rules and regulations.

SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

Singular verbs are for singular nouns

He is my friends

She is hungry.

This is my pet dog.

Plural verbs are for plural nouns,

They are my friends.

They are hungry.

These are my pet dogs.

GERUNDS

A gerund is formed by adding ‘-ing’ to a verb.

Mr Subra enjoys gardening.

Their son enjoys playing football.

Mrs Subra loves sewing.

The Simple Present Tense

(a) Used to show an activity or an event that is happening now

I need to have my bath now.

I want to take my lunch now.

I want to go swimming.

(b) Used to show actions that are done habitually.

I eat breakfast every morning.

I swim every weekend.

She plays tennis every Friday.

(c) Used to express something that was true in the past, is true in the present, and will be true in the future

The earth is round

Health is wealth.

God is perfectly great.

WH-QUESTION WORDS

Wh-question words are used to ask questions.

Wh-question word	Example
what - to ask about: -things -people -time	What is that? What is your name? What is the time now?
who/whom - to ask about: -people (subject) -people (object)	Who is he? Whom did you invite to your party yesterday?
when - to ask about time	When shall we meet?
where - to ask about places	Where does he come from?
why - to ask about reasons	Why is she absent?
whose - to ask about: (i)            relationship (ii)          possession	Whose child is crying? Whose bag is missing?
which - to ask about: -people -things -places	Which boy is naughty? Which colour do you like? Which hotel did you book?
how - to ask about: -methods -conditions -time -quantities -opinions	How shall I make a cake? How do you go to school? How is your mother now? How are you? How long have you lived here? How fast can they swim across the river? How many pens do you have? How much is your dress? How many pupils are there in the classroom? How is your new school?

Underline the correct word.

(Who/What) is that woman? She is my sister.

(Who/Where) do you live? I live in Taman Mawar.

(What/How) does she go to school? She walks to school.

Where did the boys go? They went to the library.

                                 

POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE STATEMENTS

Positive Statements

Jimmy sings well.

Mum buys a bag.

Negative Statements

Jimmy does not sing well.

Mum does not buy a bag.

Positive sentences express something that is positive or that can be done.

Negative sentences express something that is negative or that cannot be done.

It has the word ‘not in it.

Question Tags and Responses 

Positive Statements with Negative Tags	Answers
It is a moon, isn’t it? The babies are sleepy, aren’t they? He has repaired the car, hasn’t he? They will enjoy the trip, won’t they? She buys the biscuits, doesn’t she? They love going shopping, don’t they? You are hungry, aren’t you? You would like to leave now, wouldn’t you? You will have some tea, won’t you?	Yes, it is. Yes, they are. Yes, he has. Yes, they will. Yes, she does. Yes, they do. Yes, I am. Yes, I would. Yes, I will.

Negative Statements with Positive Tags	Answers
It isn’t a moon, is it? The babies are not sleepy, are they? He has not repaired the car, has he? They would enjoy the trip, would they? She does not buy the biscuits, doesn’t she? They do not love going shopping, do they? You are not hungry, are you? You would not like to leave now, would you? You would not have some tea, would you?	No, it isn’t. No, they aren’t. No, he hasn’t. No, they wouldn’t. No, she doesn’t. No, they don’t. No, I’m not. No, I wouldn’t. No, I wouldn’t.

THE SENTENCE TYPES

	Usage	Examples
Simple Sentence	Has only one verb. It consists of one subject and one predicate. It expresses only one idea.	Subject Predicate Miss Ong is sleeping. The box costs RM5.00. The boy loves camping.
Compound Sentence	Has two or more ideas. The ideas are joined together by conjunctions like and, but, or, so, as well as.	Subject Predicate The girls sing and dance well. The house is small but comfortable.
Complex Sentence	Has two or more ideas that are not of equal importance. The ideas are joined together by subordinating conjunctions like although, if, when and while.	My father returned home immediately when he received that phone call. Although Maria is a smart girl, she is unfriendly.

Sequence Connectors

Used to connect words or sentences in a sequence of actions

How to Make Tea

First, boil the water.

Second, pour hot water into the teapot.

Then, put in a sachet of tea.

Finally, put three spoonfuls of sugar.

Others: next, later, soon, before, eventually

PUNCTUATION

Capital letters (A, Y, Z,...)

>for the first word of a sentence

>for proper nouns: names of people, places, days of the week

>for the pronoun ‘I’

Question Mark (?)

>for questions

-Where are you now?

-May I come in?

Comma (,)

->to separate a list of things

-He bought a pen, pencils, erasers and a bag.

Full stop (.)

>at the end of a sentence

>after initials e.g. P.H. Henry

>for abbreviations:

-months of the year - Jan. Feb.

-days of the week - Mon. Tues.

-time - mins. hrs.

Exclamation mark (!)

> to express strong emotion or feeling

- Help! Help!

Apostrophe (’)

- to show possession

sister’s bag, the man’s hat

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Basic English Grammar - Have, Has, Had - YouTube

Uploaded by EnglishLessons4U - Learn English with Ronnie! [engVid]

http://www.engvid.com/ By special request -- this lesson teaches you about the easily and often mixed-up ...

Grammar Rules - English Grammar

A noun is a person, place, thing, quality, animal, idea or activity. Spot the nouns in a sentence: Maria went into the city to purchase detergent. Grammar vocabulary: Nominal means any word, or group of words, used as a noun.