JOHN EASTWOOD OXFORD GUIDE TO ENGLISH GRAMMAR

Two noun phrases are in apposition when one comes after the other and both

refer to the same thing.

Everyone visits

Joseph Conrad, the famous English novelist,

he was 47.

the White House, the home of the President.couldn't speak English until

When the second phrase adds extra information, we use a comma.

When the second phrase identifies the first one, we do not use a comma.

The novelist Joseph Conrad

couldn't speak English until he was 4 7.

Pretty 25-year-old secretary Linda Pilkington

neighbours.

has shocked her friends and

The sentence about Linda is typical of newspaper style.

We can also use apposition to add emphasis. This happens in speech, too.

The man is

a fool, a complete idiot.

Other kinds of phrases can be in apposition.

The place is

miles away, much too far to walk.

The experts say the painting is

quite valuable, worth a lot of money.

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Statements, questions, imperatives

and exclamations

15 Summary

There are four sentence types: statement, question, imperative and exclamation.

Sentences can be positive or negative.

Main use

Statements

• 16 You took a photo. to give information

Negative statements

• 17 You did not take a photo. to give information

Questions

• 18 Did you take a photo? to ask for information

The imperative

• 19 Take a photo. to give orders

Exclamations

Besides the basic use, each sentence type has other uses. For example, we can use

a statement to ask for information

can be an order or request

express good wishes

• 20 What a nice photo! to express feeling(I'd like to know all the details); a question form(Can you post this letter, please?); an imperative can(Have a nice time).

16 Statements

1 Form

For clause patterns in a statement, • 7.

2 Use

This conversation contains a number of statements.

A PROGRAMME ABOUT WILDLIFE

Stella:

There's a programme about wildlife on the telly tonight.

Adrian:

Uh-huh. Well, I might watch it.

Stella:

I've got to go out tonight. It's my evening class.

Adrian:

Well, I'll video the programme for you.

Stella:

Oh, thanks. It's at eight o'clock. BBC2.

Adrian:

We can watch it together when you get back.Stella:

3 STATEMENTS, QUESTIONS, IMPERATIVES ETC PAGE 16

The basic use of a statement is to give information:

wildlife on the telly tonight.

When Adrian says

statement is an offer to do something, which Stella accepts by thanking him. And

There's a programme aboutBut some statements do more than give information.I'll video the programme for you, he is offering to video it. His

We can watch it together

There are many different uses of statements. Here are some examples.

Expressing approval:

is a suggestion to which Stella agrees.You're doing the right thing.

Expressing sympathy:

It was bad luck you didn't pass the exam.

Thanking someone:

I'm very grateful.

Asking for information:

I need to know your plans.

Giving orders:

I want you to try harder.

In some situations we can use either a statement or another sentence type.

Compare the statement

plans?

information.

I need to know your plans, the question What are yourand the imperative Tell me about your plans. All these are used to ask for

3 Performative verbs

Some present-simple verbs express the use of the statement, the action it

performs.

Promising:

I promise to be good.

Apologizing:

It was my fault. I apologize.

Predicting:

I predict a close game.

Requesting:

You are requested to vacate your room by 10.00 am.

These are performative verbs:

confess, congratulate, declare, demand, deny, disagree, forbid, forgive, guarantee,

insist, object, order, predict, promise, propose, protest, recommend, refuse, request,

suggest, thank, warn.

accept, admit, advise, agree, apologize, blame,

Sometimes we use a modal verb or similar expression. This usually makes the

statement less direct and so more tentative, more polite.

Advising:

I'd advise you to see a solicitor.

Insisting:

I must insist we keep to the rules.

Informing:

I have to inform you that you have been unsuccessful.

Some typical examples are:

apologize, must confess, must disagree, can guarantee, have to inform you, must

insist, must object, can promise, must protest, would suggest, must warn.

must admit, would advise, would agree, must

NOTE

a In general, performative verbs are fairly emphatic.

promise than

watch it together.

I promise to be good is a more emphaticI'll be good, and 7 suggest we watch it together is more emphatic than We can

b Some performative verbs are formal.

I order/request

you to leave the building. I declare this supermarket open.

c With a few verbs we can use the present continuous.

Don't come too close, I warn you/I'm

We propose/We

warning you.are proposing a compromise.

17 Negative statements

17 Negative statements

1 Use

This text contains some negative statements.

FRANKENSTEIN

In 1818 Mary Shelley wrote a famous book called 'Frankenstein'. But there was

no

monster called Frankenstein, as is popularly believed. Frankenstein was

name of the monster but the name of the person who created the monster. The

word 'Frankenstein' is often used to mean 'monster' by people who have

the book.

Another mistake is to talk of 'Doctor Frankenstein'. Frankenstein was

doctor. Mary Shelley's hero did

mathematics at the university of Ingolstadt in Bavaria. There really is a place

called Ingolstadt. There is also a place called Frankenstein, which might or might

not thenot readnever anot study medicine - he studied science and

not

have given the author the idea for the name.

The negative statements correct a mistaken idea, such as the idea that the monster

was called Frankenstein. In general, we use negative statements to inform

someone that what they might think or expect is not so.

2

Not with a verb

a In the most basic kind of negative statement,

auxiliary. We write the auxiliary and

not or n't comes after the (first)n't together as one word.

Some people

The monster

That might or

have not read the book.wasn't called Frankenstein.might not have given the author the idea for the name.

b There must be an auxiliary before

verb

not. In simple tenses we use the auxiliarydo.

I don't

The hero

Be

like horror films. NOT I like not horror films.did not study medicine. NOT The hero studied not medicine.on its own also has not/n't after it.

East London

These shoes

is not on most tourist maps.aren't very comfortable.

c Look at these forms.

Positive Negative

Full form

Negative

Short form

was called

have read

might have given

like/do like

studied/did study

was

have

might

do

did

wasn't called

haven't read

mightn't have given

don't like

didn't study

not callednot readnot have givennot likenot study

We cannot use

no to make a negative verb form.

The bus didn't come.

NOT The bus no came.

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3 STATEMENTS, QUESTIONS, IMPERATIVES ETC

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3

Not in other positions

Not

can come before a word or phrase when the speaker is correcting it.

I ordered tea,

not coffee.

That's a nice green. ~ It's blue,

not green.

Is there a meeting today?~

Not

before a phrase of distance or time.

Not today - tomorrow.can also come before a noun phrase with an expression of quantity (many) or

Not many people

There's a cinema

have their own aeroplane.not far from here.

The business was explained to me

not long afterwards.

NOTE

a

Instead of (= in place of) and rather than have a negative meaning. Compare:

They should build houses

They should build houses,

I drink tea

I drink tea,

instead of office blocks.not office blocks.rather than coffee.not coffee.

b

Beggars are a

Not unusual =

c For

Not can come before a negative prefix, e.g. un, in or dis.not unusual sight on the streets of London.fairly usual.not standing for a whole clause, e.g. 7 hope not, • 43(3).

4 Other negative words

There are other words besides

Meaning

not which have a negative meaning.

no There's

no change. not a/not any

The patient is

no better. not any

No,

she isn't. (opposite of yes)

none We wanted tickets, but there were

not any

none

no one, nobody I saw

.

left.no one/nobody acting strangely. not anyonenothing I saw nothing suspicious. not anything

nowhere There was

nowhere to park. not anywhere

few, little

Few people were interested. not many

There was

little enthusiasm. not much

never He was

never a doctor. not ever

seldom, rarely We

seldom/rarely eat out. not often

no longer Mrs Adams

no longer lives here. not any longer

hardly, scarcely We haven't finished. In fact, we've

not really, only just

hardly/scarcely

neither, nor I can't understand this.

~

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started.not eitherNeither/Nor can I. (= I can't either.)17 Negative statements

NOTE

a The verbs

fail, avoid, stop, prevent and deny have a negative meaning.

You have

failed to reach the necessary standard.

(= You have not reached the necessary standard.)

I want to

A lock could

The player

avoid getting caught in the rush hour.stop/prevent others from using the telephone.denied having broken the rules.

(= The player said he/she had not broken the rules.)

b

Without has a negative meaning.

Lots of people were

without a ticket.

(= Lots of people did not have a ticket.)

c For negative prefixes, e.g.

unusual, disagree, • 284(2).

5 Double negatives

We do not normally use

not/n't or never with another negative word.

I

That

We've

didn't see anyone. NOT I didn't see no one.will never happen. NOT That won't never happen.hardly started. NOT We haven't hardly started.

In non-standard English, a double negative means the same as a single negative.

I didn't

see no one. (non-standard)

(=

In standard English a double negative has a different meaning.

I didn't see anyone./I saw no one.)

I

didn't see no one. I saw one of my friends. (= I saw someone.)

We can't do nothing.

(= We must do something.)

NOTE

We sometimes use a negative after

I

I wouldn't be surprised if/It wouldn't surprise me if...wouldn't be surprised if it rained/if it didn't rain.

The speaker expects that it will rain.

6 The emphatic negative

a We can stress

Frankenstein did not study medicine.

not.

If we use the short form

Frankenstein didn't study medicine.

n't, then we can stress the auxiliary (e.g. did).

b We can use

at all to emphasize a negative.

Frankenstein wasn't the name of the monster

at all.

There was

nowhere at all to park.

Here are some other phrases with a similar meaning.

The operation was

The project is

Her son's visits were

not a success by any means. I'm not in the least tired.not nearly complete. There is still a long way to go.far from frequent.

We can use

absolutely before no and its compounds.

There was

absolutely nowhere to park.

NOTE

a We can use

ever with a negative word.

No

one ever takes any notice of these memos.

For more details about

b We can use

ever and never, •211(1) Note c.whatsoever after nothing, none, or after no + noun.

There's

The people seem to have no hope nothing whatsoever we can do about it.whatsoever.OK, I should be back around ten.

JOHN ESTWOOD OXFORD GUIDE TO ENGLISH GRAMMAR



2 THE SIMPLE SENTENCE

14 Phrases in apposition