Chapters 9-12 Flashcards
(39 cards)
What are the three auxiliary verbs that are not modals?
The primary auxiliaries be, have and do.
Give an example of one modal used both in both a deontic and epistemic construction.
Deontic: “I must finish this essay.”
Epistemic: “It must have fallen below zero last night.”
What is the traditional rule regarding “can” and “may”?
“Can” is about ability. “May” is about permission.
What sort of tasks do the primary auxiliaries perform?
“be” and “have” express aspect and voice for verbs, and “do” has become all wrapped up in how we express questions and negation.
What’s an example of an adjective that means different things attributively and predicatively.
His wife is late/His late wife
The curtains are sheer/This is sheer stupidity.
Where might you find double or multiple modals in a phrase?
In non-standard varieties of English such as some southern varieties. “might could”, e.g.
What are weak and strong verbs?
weak verbs take -ed for past tense; strong verbs have a vowel change (i.e. drink, drank).
What is different about modal auxiliaries?
They do not inflect. “She mights” or “They musted” does not happen.
In the sentence “Mary looked up my number” is there a phrasal verb?
Yes. “Looked up” is a unit. You can move the object to create “Mary looked my number up” or “Mary looked it up.” But not “Up my phone number is where Mary looked” because “up my phone number” is not a prepositional phrase.
Describe perfect aspect.
describes an action in the past and its relation to another moment in time.
What are some verbs that take prepositional phrases as objects?
Listen. I listen to music, not I listen music. Depend. It depends on the time, not it depends the time.
How do adjectives of 3-syllables or more typically form comparatives and superlatives?
With more and most.
Give an example of “to read” taking two objects.
“I read my grandmother the newspaper.” Here the verb is ditransitive.
When does “can” for permission work better, even for mavens?
In a contracted negative construction such as “can’t I come?” as opposed to “mayn’t I come?”
What are three tenses?
present, past and future.
What types of modality to the modal verbs express?
deontic modality: ability, necessity, obligation or permission and epistemic modality: an assessment of reality or likelihood.
Describe progressive aspect.
Actions in progress at the moment we are talking about them. (Her husband is cooking right now).
What’s an example of using the nominative in the predicate for subject pronouns sounding odd?
“It is we” vs. “It’s us.”
What’s a complex transitive verb?
One that looks like it has two objects, like “We elected Morgan president of the class.” But Morgan is the object and “president of the class” is equated with Morgan. It’s an object complement.
What is the grammatical issue with the “it is I” vs. “it is me” issue?
The form of the “to be” verb is a linking verb equating the subject with a predicate noun or adjective phrase. Many think that phrase should be in the nominative.
How do two-syllable adjectives typically form comparatives and superlatives?
They can go with either -er, -est or with more, most.
Why is “I am good” really not bad?
the “to be” verb here is a linking verb and expects an adjective. “good” should be fine, but is somewhat stigmatized.
Describe the present perfect.
An action that began in the past and is still happening or is relevant now. (I have run five miles).
Give an example of “to read” taking one object.
“I read the newspaper.” Here the verb is transitive, or monotransitive.
