Essential English Grammar Rules That Are Not Frequently Mentioned | Glowforge

 Essential English Grammar Rules That Are Not Frequently Mentioned | Glowforge

In this blog post, I will be correcting the MOST common mistakes English learners make regarding the grammar concepts of the English language.

The Differences Between:

1) There

2) They're

3) Their

1) There: 

The pronoun "there" means a place or location. It is used to refer to any place which is AWAY from you and not close to you. The opposite of "There" would be "Here". ( "Here" is used to refer to anything which is nearer you. For example, "I feel safe here." OR "Here is my assignment.")

 Assuming you say, 

"Let's meet there" (Talking about a place)

2) They're:

The abbreviation "They're" stands for "They are". ''They're'' is just a short form for ''They are''. The pronoun "they" refers to groups of two or more individuals or objects in the third person plural. But these days, it's also frequently used as a singular pronoun to mention a single person who identifies as nonbinary or undefined in gender.

In order to sound more fluent or speak quickly, we often say ''They're'' instead of ''They are''. One technique for combining two words into a single one is using contractions. They also help to create a more conversational writing style and a sense of inclusion for the reader. However, I would suggest you to use the full forms instead of contractions while writing Essays. 

Like in "They're going to the park."

3) Their 

The possessive pronoun "their" shows possession. Let's say, "Their dog is playing in the yard." Never use "their" for "his" or "hers"; instead, use "their" only to refer to plural subjects. 

It's vs. Its:

It's:

"It's" is a contraction of "it is" or "it has." To determine if you should use "It's," ask yourself if the sentence makes sense with "it is" or "it has." For example:

- Correct: It's been a long day. (It has been a long day.)

- Correct: She couldn't believe it's only been a year since they met. (It is only a year since they met.)

Its:

On the other hand, "Its" is a possessive pronoun. It shows ownership or possession, similar to "his" or "her." To use "Its," replace the word with "it is" or "it has." If the sentence still makes sense, then use "Its." For instance:

- Correct: The cat sat on its mat. (The cat sat on the mat it is.)

- Incorrect: The dog chased its tail. (The dog chased the tail it is doesn't make sense.)

Your vs. You're

Your:

"Your" is a possessive pronoun, indicating ownership or belonging. To check if you should use "Your," replace it with "you are." If the sentence still makes sense, then use "Your." For example:

- Correct: Your car is parked outside. (You are the car parked outside, which doesn't make sense.)

- Correct: Your friend is waiting for you. (You are the friend waiting for you, which doesn't make sense.)

You're:

"You're" is a contraction of "you are" or "you are not." To decide if you should use "You're," ask yourself if the sentence makes sense with "you are" or "you are not." For example:

- Correct: You're the best student in the class. (You are the best student in the class.)

- Correct: You're not allowed to use your phone during class. (You are not allowed to use your phone during class.)

 By applying the simple rules mentioned above, you can confidently use these words correctly and continue to improve your English language skills. Keep practicing, and soon these distinctions will become second nature!

How To Know If A Word Has Double Letters:

How would you know if the spellings of a word will be doubled? That's quite confusing, isn't it? Well, let me clarify the Grammatical rules for you!

FIRST OF ALL, You need to determine whether the second last letter of the verb is a Vowel or a Consonant. 

In Case you aren't already aware:

Consonants:

Consonants are speaking sounds that are produced by greatly limiting the vocal tract's ability to breathe. Usually, they are formed by using the tongue, lips, or voice cords to limit the airflow. All the Consonants in the English Language are: 

B, C, D, F, G, H, J, K, L, M, N, P, Q, R, S, T, V, W, X, Y 

Vowels:

In contrast, vowels are spoken sounds that are produced in the vocal tract without a major airflow blockage. Usually, they are made by opening the vocal tract to unrestricted airflow, then shifting the position of the lips and tongue to alter the sound's resonance. Vowels include:

A, E, I, O, U

Now that you know how to define vowels and consonants, Let's take a look at the grammatical rules of the English language!

The Letters In A Word Are Only Doubled In The Following Cases:

1. When changing a verb with its second last letter as a vowel into Present/Past/Future continuous form (-ing form), the LAST letter is doubled. For example:

Hop → Hopping (The second last letter is a vowel; O)

Travel → Travelling (The second last letter is a vowel; E)

Run → Running  (The second last letter is a vowel; U)

What's NOT correct:

- Hoping   (The verb, "Hope" is a state verb and we do NOT add -ing with state verbs. State verbs are the verbs which are not performed physically but are Emotions or Mental States rather than Actual actions. For example, the verbs: to like, to hate, to need, to agree, to know, to mean, to forget, to want,  are all state verbs. There are many more, but to make you understand the concept, I've given just a few examples) 

 - Runing (This one is totally wrong as the second last letter is a vowel and the last letter will be doubled.

⚠ These rules are not only applied to verbs, but also Adjectives and other words. For example, when changing an adjective into its Comparative and Superlative degree.

Big → Bigger → Biggest

What are Regular Verbs? How are they different from Irregular verbs?

Regular verbs follow a consistent pattern for their conjugation. They typically add "-d" or "-ed" to the base form of the verb to form the past tense and add "-d" or "-en" to the base form to form the past participle. For example, the regular verb "run" becomes "ran" in the past tense and "run" in the past participle.

Irregular verbs, on the other hand, do not follow this consistent pattern. They have unique and often complex ways of forming their past tense and past participle forms. Some irregular verbs may have completely different forms for their past tense and past participle, while others may only differ slightly. For example, the irregular verb "go" becomes "went" in the past tense and "gone" in the past participle.

The Letters In A Word Are NOT Doubled When:

- When conjugating a verb that ends with ''W", "Y" and "X" into its Present/Past/Future Continuous form (-ing form) or Past form (-ed form), NO letters are doubled. Even if a verb has a vowel as its second last letter, but ends with "W", "Y" or "X", its spellings will remain the same and only -ed or -ing will be placed. For instance,

Play → Playing

Repay → Repaying 

Hope this Helped!

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