Gerunds - Figuring them out.

I commonly see errors with the use of Gerunds or Infinitives. It's natural to confuse these two interesting components of the English language.

Gerunds
Summary: This handout provides a detailed overview (including descriptions and examples) of gerunds, participles, and infinitives.
Contributors:Purdue OWL
Last Edited: 2011-12-09 01:47:54
A gerund is a verbal that ends in -ing and functions as a noun. The term verbal indicates that a gerund, like the other two kinds of verbals, is based on a verb and therefore expresses action or a state of being. However, since a gerund functions as a noun, it occupies some positions in a sentence that a noun ordinarily would, for example: subject, direct object, subject complement, and object of preposition.
Gerund as subject:
• Traveling might satisfy your desire for new experiences. (Traveling is the gerund.)
• The study abroad program might satisfy your desire for new experiences. (The gerund has been removed.)
Gerund as direct object:
• They do not appreciate my singing. (The gerund is singing.)
• They do not appreciate my assistance. (The gerund has been removed)
Gerund as subject complement:
• My cat's favorite activity is sleeping. (The gerund is sleeping.)
• My cat's favorite food is salmon. (The gerund has been removed.)
Gerund as object of preposition:
• The police arrested him for speeding. (The gerund is speeding.)
• The police arrested him for criminal activity. (The gerund has been removed.)
A gerund phrase is a group of words consisting of a gerund and the modifier(s) and/or (pro)noun(s) or noun phrase(s) that function as the direct object(s), indirect object(s), or complement(s) of the action or state expressed in the gerund, such as:
The gerund phrase functions as the subject of the sentence.
Finding a needle in a haystack would be easier than what we're trying to do.
Finding (gerund)
a needle (direct object of action expressed in gerund)
in a haystack (prepositional phrase as adverb)
The gerund phrase functions as the direct object of the verb appreciate.
I hope that you appreciate my offering you this opportunity.
my (possessive pronoun adjective form, modifying the gerund)
offering (gerund)
you (indirect object of action expressed in gerund)
this opportunity (direct object of action expressed in gerund)
The gerund phrase functions as the subject complement.
Tom's favorite tactic has been jabbering away to his constituents.
jabbering away to (gerund)
his constituents (direct object of action expressed in gerund)
The gerund phrase functions as the object of the preposition for.
You might get in trouble for faking an illness to avoid work.
faking (gerund)
an illness (direct object of action expressed in gerund)
to avoid work (infinitive phrase as adverb)
The gerund phrase functions as the subject of the sentence.
Being the boss made Jeff feel uneasy.
Being (gerund)
the boss (subject complement for Jeff, via state of being expressed in gerund)
Punctuation
A gerund virtually never requires any punctuation with it.
Points to remember:
1. A gerund is a verbal ending in -ing that is used as a noun.
2. A gerund phrase consists of a gerund plus modifier(s), object(s), and/or complement(s).
3. Gerunds and gerund phrases virtually never require punctuation.

American Football Basics and New English Vocabulary

AMERICAN FOOTBALL – It’s hard to watch the bouncing pigskin (ball) and it’s hard to understand any sport when first introduced to one.
I thought that this would be a good time to introduce some American culture to my friends in Brazil. After all, they have been kind enough to teach me so much about this country’s beautiful culture, whether it be sports, food, drink, or the wonderful people in this diverse land.

With the National Football League’s season winding down to the final four games of the season (Championship Round: National and American), Pro Bowl and the Superbowl), I got the idea of posting some general and not so general notes on my blog about football. First, a little history:

HISTORY: History of Football
American football was started in 1879 with rules instituted by Walter Camp.
By Mary Bellis, About.com Guide

The Pigskin aka Playing Ball
Derived from the English game of rugby, American football was started in 1879 with rules instituted by Walter Camp, player and coach at Yale University.
Walter Camp
Walter Camp was born April 17, 1859, in New Haven, Connecticut. He attended Yale from 1876 to 1882, where he studied medicine and business. Walter Camp was an author, athletic director, chairman of the board of the New Haven Clock Company, and director of the Peck Brothers Company. He was general athletic director and head advisory football coach at Yale University from 1888-1914, and chairman of the Yale football committee from 1888-1912. Camp played football at Yale and helped evolve the rules of the game away from Rugby and Soccer rules into the rules of American Football as we know them today.
One precursor to Walter Camp's influence was William Ebb Ellis, a student at the Rugby School in England. In 1823, Ellis was the first person noted for picking up the ball during the soccer game and running with it, thereby breaking and changing the rules. In 1876, at the Massosoit convention, the first attempts at writing down the rules of American football were made. Walter Camp edited every American Football rulebook until his death in 1925.
Walter Camp contributed the following changes from Rugby and Soccer to American football:

• one side retained undisputed possession of the ball, until that side gives up
the ball as a result of its own violations
• the line of scrimmage
• 11 on a team instead of 15
• created the quarter-back and center positions
• forward pass
• standardized the scoring system, numerical scoring
• created the safety, interference, penalties, and the neutral zone
• tackling as low as the knee was permitted - 1888
• a touchdown increased in value to six points and field goals went down to
three points - 1912

The NFL or the National Football League, was formed in 1920.
POSITIONS:



SIMPLE ENGLISH IN AMERICAN FOOTBALL: Make sure you checkout the video and English vocabulary lesson at the website below. It will teach you a little more about the game involving not a ball, but a pigskin. Enjoy!

http://funeasyenglish.com/classroom-free-online-english-language-lesson-january-30.htm

TERMINOLOGY: (taken from Dummies.com and written by Howie Long and John Czarnecki);
Football fans have their own language when they talk about the game. To keep up, it’s useful to know what terms like down, extra point, safety, and snap mean.

• Down: A period of action that starts when the ball is put into play and ends when the ball is ruled dead (meaning that the play is completed). The offense gets four downs to advance the ball 10 yards. If it fails to do so, it must surrender the ball to the opponent, usually by punting on the fourth down.

• End zone: A 10-yard-long area at both ends of the field — the promised land for a football player. You score a touchdown when you enter the end zone in control of the football. If you’re tackled in your own end zone while in possession of the football, the other team gets a safety.

• Extra point: A kick, worth one point, that’s typically attempted after every touchdown (it’s also known as the point after touchdown, or PAT). The ball is placed on either the 2-yard line (NFL) or the 3-yard line (college and high school) and generally is kicked from inside the 10-yard line after being snapped to the holder. It must sail between the uprights and above the crossbar of the goalpost to be considered good.

• Field goal: A kick, worth three points, that can be attempted from anywhere on the field but usually is attempted within 40 yards of the goalpost. Like an extra point, a kick must sail above the crossbar and between the uprights of the goalpost to be ruled good.

• Fumble: The act of losing possession of the ball while running with it or being tackled. Members of the offense and defense can recover a fumble. If the defense recovers the fumble, the fumble is called a turnover.

• Hash marks: The lines on the center of the field that signify 1 yard on the field. Before every play, the ball is spotted between the hash marks or on the hash marks, depending on where the ball carrier was tackled on the preceding play.

• Interception: A pass that’s caught by a defensive player, ending the offense’s possession of the ball.

• Kickoff: A free kick (the receiving team can’t make an attempt to block it) that puts the ball into play. A kickoff is used at the start of the first and third periods and after every touchdown and successful field goal.

• Punt: A kick made when a player drops the ball and kicks it while it falls toward his foot. A punt is usually made on a fourth down when the offense must surrender possession of the ball to the defense because it couldn’t advance 10 yards.

• Return: The act of receiving a kick or punt and running toward the opponent’s goal line with the intent of scoring or gaining significant yardage.

• Sack: When a defensive player tackles the quarterback behind the line of scrimmage for a loss of yardage.

• Safety: A score, worth two points, that the defense earns by tackling an offensive player in possession of the ball in his own end zone.

• Snap: The action in which the ball is hiked (tossed between the legs) by the center to the quarterback, to the holder on a kick attempt, or to the punter. When the snap occurs, the ball is officially in play and action begins.

• Touchdown: A score, worth six points, that occurs when a player in possession of the ball crosses the plane of the opponent’s goal line, or when a player catches the ball while in the opponent’s end zone, or when a defensive player recovers a loose ball in the opponent’s end zone.


NOTE: I'll be posting more about this sport in the coming days and weeks. I hope at the very least, you learn some basics and some new English.

Anyway vs Anyways

Anyway vs. anyways
as taken from the webpage http://www.grammarist.com/usage/anyways/
Anyways is a colloquial variant of the adverb anyway. It’s generally considered a casualism and thus has no place in formal or serious writing. In such contexts, anyway is usually better.
Anyways is not always inappropriate. In the following examples, the writers use anyways to strike an informal note:
Anyways, it’s time to move on. [NY Times]
Whatever. Home Improvement sucked anyways. [Bleacher Report]
But in writing that is not intended to have a colloquial tone, anyway is usually better—for example:
Why is Google building a Google phone, anyway? [The Atlantic]
It can be nearly impossible to see from publicly available data which banks are extending or restructuring loans they believe will one day fail anyway. [Wall Street Journal]
Anyway, I think it’s pretty hard to make a bad Hurley episode. [Chicago Tribune]
This may change as the English language evolves. For now, though, whether we like it or not, anyways is considered substandard.

Farther vs Further

Farther versus Further
Throughout history, farther and further have been used interchangeably. Even my friendly Merriam-Webster Dictionary states that the words are interchangeable; they are the inflected form of far. It is not until recent history that they are becoming distinguished by grammarians.

Farther
Farther shows a relation to physical distance. If you can replace the word farther with "more miles" then you have done it correctly.
• Our car drove farther than I thought it would on one tank of gas.
• I wanted to run farther, but I became too exhausted.
• Our house is farther away from the restaurant than yours.
Further
Further relates to metaphorical distance or depth. It is a time, degree, or quantity. It is also another way of saying "additional".
• I asked that there be further discussion on the matter.
• I need to look further into the logistics of moving farther from my office building.
• I hope that gas prices drop further for our road trip vacation.

Farther shows a relation to physical distance. If you can replace the word farther with "more miles" then you have done it correctly.
• Our car drove farther than I thought it would on one tank of gas.
• I wanted to run farther, but I became too exhausted.
• Our house is farther away from the restaurant than yours.
Further
Further relates to metaphorical distance or depth. It is a time, degree, or quantity. It is also another way of saying "additional".
• I asked that there be further discussion on the matter.
• I need to look further into the logistics of moving farther from my office building.
• I hope that gas prices drop further for our road trip vacation.

Well, I hope that this has helped you some. If not, let me know and we can discuss this further. Or was that farther?
Phil

Is it “I” or “me?”
Picture this: Jesse Kasserman, a high school senior with a strong academic record and high hopes, walks into the office of Dr. James, an admission representative of XYZ University. “Thank you for inviting my mom and I to see the campus,” he says.
The college representative cringes.
Jesse might have blown the interview already. Why? Jesse should have said “my mom and me.” Smart people everywhere agonize over the misuse of “I” and “me.” It’s one of the most common mistakes in word usage.
People seem to fear the word “me.” Why? Maybe the word “me” reminds us of baby talk, and that makes us nervous. You would never say “Me want a sandwich,” after all. That would be very embarrassing.
But to many people, it sounds just as wrong to hear “The secret is just between you and I.” It’s just wrong.
The official explanation is, “I” is a nominative pronoun and is used as a subject of a sentence or clause, while “me” is an objective pronoun and used as an object. Sound too technical? Then think of this:
The trouble with “me” usually begins when speakers are stringing together two or more objects in a sentence. “I” is not an objective case word, but people try to plug it in as an object because it just sounds smarter.
All you have to do is leave out the second object. Look over these examples, and you’ll see it’s really simple.
You might be tempted to say:
WRONG: “Would you explain that to John and I?”
But then, when you omit the other object, you’ll have:
WRONG: “Would you explain that to I?”
Now that just sounds silly. Try this:
RIGHT: “Would you explain that to John and me?”
RIGHT: “Would you explain that to me?”
Now practice with these:
WRONG: Leave the decision to Laura and I.
RIGHT: Leave the decision to me.
RIGHT: Leave the decision to Laura and me.
WRONG: Please join Glenna and I for lunch.
RIGHT: Please join me for lunch.
RIGHT: Please join Glenna and me for lunch.
WRONG: It’s just between you and I.
RIGHT: It’s just between you and me.
WRONG: The group consists of Laura, Joe, and I.
RIGHT: The group consists of Laura, Joe, and me.
Don't forget, when composing any essay or any research paper, be sure to go back and proof read carefully.

Nominative Pronoun –
Subject of a Sentence –
What Are the Nominative Pronouns?
Here are the nominative pronouns: I, you, he, she, it, they, and we. These are the pronouns that are usually the subject of a sentence – and they do the action in that sentence. A few examples of these nominative pronouns acting as the subject of a sentence are as follows:
• I went to the store today.
• She talked to her brother on the phone.
• You ran five miles yesterday.
• They are not very happy about what happened.
• We work together as a team.
• It is my favorite color.
• He is my best friend.
Here are a few pronouns that are not nominative because they are being affected by the subject and verb: me, them, her, him, us. Here are a few examples of these pronouns in action – can you understand why they are not nominative pronouns?
• My mom told me to go to the store today.
• The coach ordered her to go for a run.
• The students don’t understand him.
• Nobody will listen to me!
• The maid doesn’t want to do the cleaning for them.

Nominative Pronoun
Many people struggle when labeling pronouns by their type, but they usually use these pronouns correctly in a sentence. However, sometimes there are typical mistakes which even native English speakers make. This usually involves using I and me interchangeably. Look at the following two sentences, for example:
1. Sally and me are doing our homework together.
2. Sally and I are doing our homework together.
The second sentence is correct, because “Sally and I” is the subject of the sentence, so the nominative pronoun must be used for the sentence to make sense grammatically. However, the example below completely changes the situation. Can you understand why?
1. The teacher told Sally and me to do our homework.
2. The teacher told Sally and I to do our homework.
Not so fast! If you assumed that you once again had to use “Sally and I” – you were wrong! Many young students drill the mini-phrase “and I” instead of “and me” in their minds because the first is much more commonly correct than the second. Remember, though, that “I” is a nominative pronoun. This means that you can’t use it when it is an object in a sentence. “The teacher” is the subject, which makes “Sally and me” the correct object. Don’t confuse your nominative pronouns with other pronouns, or you’ll find yourself in trouble.
Examples of Nominative Pronouns in Sentences
Look at the following sentences, which all use nominative pronouns correctly.
1. She likes chocolate ice cream.
2. It is a beautiful day outside.
3. He is very tall.
4. They live near my house.
Now look at the following sentences – they all use pronouns incorrectly! Can you use nominative pronouns to fix each sentence?
1. Me like to eat cookies.
2. Her is a very nice lady.
3. Him go to the store to buy milk for breakfast.
4. Them are my neighbors.
In the following examples, can you tell which sentences use nominative pronouns correctly, and which don’t use nominative pronouns correctly? Be careful – these are designed to trick you!
1. I am the team leader.
2. Everyone has to follow what me says.
3. If you want to understand he, then you will have to listen very carefully.
4. Not many people know that her is an astronaut.
For more examples that involve using a nominative pronoun correctly, speak to your English teacher at Wizard and see if he or she can help you – or take a grammar book out at your local library and practice on your own.

How to Pronounce "the" in English

Normally, we pronounce "the" with a short sound (like "thuh"). But when "the" comes before a vowel sound, we pronounce it as a long "thee".

vowel sound	we write	we say
A	the apple	thee apple
E	the egg	thee egg
I	the ice-cream	thee ice-cream
O	the orange	thee orange
U	the ugli fruit	thee ugli fruit

It is important to understand that it is what we say that matters, not what we write. It is the sound that matters, not the letter used in writing a word. So we use a long "thee" before a vowel sound, not necessarily before a vowel. Look at these cases:

we write	with	we say	with
the house	consonant (h)	thuh house	consonant sound
the hour	consonant (h)	thee our	vowel sound
the university	vowel (u)	thuh youniversity	consonant sound
the umbrella	vowel (u)	thee umbrella	vowel sound

Emphatic the [thee]
When we wish to place emphasis on a particular word, we can use "emphatic the" [thee], whether or not the word begins with a consonant or vowel sound. For example:

A: I saw the [thuh] President yesterday.
B: What! The [thee] President of the United States?
A: Yes, exactly.

English Improvement Suggestions

Improving Your English

A lot of people are always asking, "How do I improve my English?" There are many possible answers, but here are just a few pieces of advice.

Be responsible for your own learning

Sure you have teachers, reading materials, and websites to help you with your English, but who is really responsible for making sure you learn English well? Nobody but you. Make sure you are the one who is taking charge of your own learning. There is a good article about the subject on the 5 Minute English website. It's at www.5minuteenglish.com/articles. Check it out.

Immerse yourself in English as much as possible

Immerse means to be surrounded by something. If you are immersed in English, it is all around you. Of course this isn't always possible, but you can do some things to surround yourself in English from time to time.

Listen to the radio in English. If there are no English radio stations where you live, listen to one on the internet.

Watch TV and movies in English. If you have English channels on your TV, watch them. If they have subtitles (the words written in your language) underneath the picture, see if they can be turned off. Some people even tape paper across the bottom of the screen so they can't see the words. Most DVD's are great because you can choose the language you want to hear.

Speak English to your friends. Get a conversation buddy (friend) and speak in English as much as possible. If it is a person whose native language is the same as your own, you may feel silly speaking in English at first. But don't worry. Continue to do it and it will become more natural to you. Finding friends whose native language is English is even better. Ask your friend to correct you when needed.

Study or travel to an English-speaking country. Of course the best way to immerse yourself in the English language is to live in an all English environment. You'll find yourself surrounded with the language everywhere you turn. It can be a more difficult and expensive choice, but you may find it to be a very valuable and helpful experience.

Other ideas. Take an English class, join an English group, find a tutor, read English magazines. Do whatever you can to immerse yourself in the language.

Monitor yourself

This means to pay attention to how you use English. Think (a little) about how you are going to say something before it comes out of your mouth. But don't think about all of the problems you have in English at the same time. Just choose something you know you are having difficulty with and work on using it correctly. For example, if you know that you have problems remembering to use a, an, and the, spend a few days trying to put them into sentences as you speak. Don't worry about anything else. Concentrate on that. When you feel that you are improving, choose something else to work on. Just keep trying and little by little, your English will get better everyday.