Grammar Flashcards

In the sentence 'She rarely speaks during meetings,' what grammatical role does 'rarely' play?

Answer: Adverb modifying 'speaks'

'Rarely' is an adverb that modifies the verb 'speaks,' describing how often the action occurs.

Which sentence demonstrates correct subject-verb agreement?

Answer: Neither the captain nor the soldiers were ready.

When 'neither...nor' connects a singular and plural noun, the verb agrees with the noun closest to it ('soldiers'), requiring 'were.'

What is the function of the subjunctive mood in 'I wish I were a linguist'?

Answer: It expresses a hypothetical or contrary-to-fact condition.

The subjunctive mood ('were' instead of 'was') signals that the situation is hypothetical or contrary to reality.

Identify the indirect object in: 'The sergeant gave the recruits their orders.'

Answer: the recruits

'The recruits' is the indirect object — the recipient of the direct object 'their orders.'

Which type of clause is underlined: 'The report that she submitted was classified'?

Answer: Relative (adjective) clause

'That she submitted' is a relative clause modifying the noun 'report.'

What grammatical term describes the '-ed' ending on a regular verb such as 'walked'?

Answer: Inflectional suffix forming past tense

'-ed' is an inflectional suffix that marks regular verbs for simple past tense without changing the word's grammatical category.

In 'Running every morning improves endurance,' what is the grammatical function of 'Running every morning'?

Answer: Gerund phrase acting as the subject

'Running every morning' is a gerund phrase (verb-ing form used as a noun) functioning as the subject of the sentence.