Learn English Basic Grammar With Simple Examples

We may say--

• John is absent, because John is ill.

But it is better to avoid the repetition of the noun John, and say--

• John is absent, because he is ill.

A word that is thus used instead of a noun is called Pronoun (Pronoun means for a noun.)
Def-- A Pronoun is a word used instead of a Noun.
Read the following sentences:

• I am young.           We are young.
• You are young.       They are young. 
• He (she, it) is young. 

I, You, We, He, She, They are called Personal Pronouns because they stand for the three persons.

1. The person speaking. 
2. The person spoken to, and
3. The person spoken of. 

The pronoun I and We, which denote the person or persons speaking, are said to be Personal Pronouns of the First Person.
The Pronoun You, which denote the person or persons spoken to, is said to be a Personal Pronoun of the Second Person.
You is used both in the singular and plural.
The pronouns he (she) and they, which denote the person or persons spoken of, are said to be Personal Pronouns of the Third Person. It, although it denotes the thing spoken of, is also called a Personal Pronoun of the third person. (The Personal Pronouns of the Third Person are, strictly speaking, Demonstrative Pronouns.)    

If I Say --
I have a black and white dog.
I mean a dog that is partly black and partly white.
But if I say--

• I have a black and a white dog.
• I mean two dogs, one black and the other white. 

Hence when two or more adjectives qualify the same noun, the Article is used before the first adjective only; but when they qualify different nouns, expressed or understood, the Article is normally used before each adjective.
Compare--

1. The Secretary and Treasurer is absent. 
2. The secretary and the Treasurer are absent. 

The article is omitted--
1- Before names of substances and abstract nouns. (i.e. uncountable nouns) used in a general sense; as,

• Sugar is bad for your teeth.
• Gold is a precious metal.
• Wisdom is the gift of heaven.
• Honesty is the best policy.
• Virtue is its own reward.

Note-- Uncountable nouns take the when used in a particular sense (specially when qualified by an adjective or adjective phrase or clause);as,

• Would you pass me the sugar? (= the sugar on the table)
• The wisdom of Solomon is great.
• I can't forget the kindness with which he treated me.

2- Before plural countable nouns used in a general sense;as,

• Childlike chocolates. 
• Computers are used in many offices.

Note- that such nouns take 'the' when used with a particular meaning;as,
Where are the children? (= Our children)
3- Before most proper nouns (except those referred to earlier), namely, names of people (e.g. Paul, John), names of continents, countries, cities, etc. (e.g. Europe, Pakistan, Nagpur), names of individual mountains (e.g. Mount Everest), individual islands, lakes, hills, etc.

The Indefinite Article is used-
1- In its original numerical sense of one;as,

• Twelve inches make a foot.
• Not a word was said.
• A word to the wise is sufficient.
• A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

2- In the vague sense of a certain;as,

• A Bob (= a certain person named Bob) is suspected by the police.
• One evening a beggar came to my door.

3- In the sense of any, to single out an individual as the representative of a class;as,

• A pupil should obey his teacher.
• A cow is a useful animal.

4- To make a common noun of a proper noun;as,

• A Daniel come to judgement ! (A Daniel = a very wise man)

The Definite Article "the" is used---
1- When we talk about a particular person or thing, or one already referred to (that is, when it is clear from the context which one we mean); as,

• The book you want is out of print. (Which book? The one you want.)
• Let's go to the park. (= the park in this town.)
• The girl cried. (the girl = the girl already talked about)

2- When a singular noun is meant to represent a whole class;as,

• The cow is a useful animal. (Or we may say, "Cows are useful animals.")
• The horse is a noble animal.
• The cat loves comfort.
• The rose is the sweetest of all flowers.
• The banyan is a king of fig tree. (Do not say, "a king of a fig tree." This is a common error.)

The two nouns man and woman can be used in a general sense without either article.

• Man is the only animal that uses fire.
• Woman is man's mate.

Once upon a time there lived a farmer. He had a strange hen. He laid an egg of gold daily. He sold the golden eggs to the goldsmith. Slowly the man became very rich.
He thought that the stomach of the hen must be full of eggs of gold. He could get all the eggs by cutting open the stomach. The farmer became greedy. He was not contented with getting one egg daily. He wanted to get all the eggs at once.
So, he cut open the stomach of the hen. To his surprise there were no golden egg in it. He repented upon his folly. But nothing could be done. He was very sad. He had lost a hen that laid a golden egg daily.
Moral:- 1- Don't be greedy.
            2- Greed is a curse. 
            3- Haste makes waste. 
            4- It is no use crying over spill milk

Once upon a time there was a stag. One day he felt thirsty. He went to a pond. As he bent down to drink water, he saw the reflection of his horns in the water. He felt very proud of his horns. Then his eyes fell on the reflection of his legs of his legs. He did not like them. He was ashamed of them. He cursed his legs for their ugliness. Suddenly he heard the bugle of the hunters and the barking of their dogs. He ran to escape the hunters. But his horns got caught in the bushes. The stag tried very hard to free them. In desperation he gave a massive tug. With the result the horns broke, and he became free. He ran with all his might and managed to save himself from the hunters. The tired stag now cursed his horns for nearly getting him killed.


Moral:- 1- Pride hath a fall. 
             2- All that glitters is not gold. 
             3- Appearance are often deceptive. 

One day a wonderful plate made of gold fell from Heaven into the court of a temple at Benares; and on the plate these words were inscribed: "A gift from Heaven to him who loves best." The priests at once made a proclamation that every day at twelve o'clock, all who would like to claim the plate should assemble at the temple, to have their kind deeds judged.
Everyday for a whole year all kinds of holy men, hermits, scholars and nobles came, and related to the priests their deeds of charity, and the priests in solemn council heard their claims. At last they decided that the one who seemed to be the greatest lover of mankind was a rich man who had that very year given all his wealth to the poor. so they gave him the plate of gold. but when he took it in his hard, it turned to worthless, lead; though, when he dropped it in his amazement on to the floor, it became gold again.
For another year claimants came; and the priests awarded the prize three times. But the same thing happened, showing that Heaven did not consider these men worthy of the gift. Meanwhile a large number of beggars came and lay about the temple gate, hoping that the claimants who came would give them alms to prove they were worthy of the golden plate. It was a good time for the beggars, because the pilgrims gave them plenty of money; but they gave them no sympathy, nor even a look of pity.

King Francis was a great lover of all kinds of spots; and one day he and his courtiers, noblemen and ladies, sat watching wild savage lions fighting each other in the enclosure below. Amongst the courtiers sat Count de Lorge beside a beautiful and lively lady of noble birth whom he loved and hoped to marry. The lions roared, and bit and tore each other with savage fury, until the king said to his courtiers, "Gentlemen, we are better up here than down there!"
The lady, hearing him, thought she would show the king and his court how devoted her lover was to he: so she dropped her glove down among the savage lions, and then looked at Count de Lorge and smiled at him. He bowed to her, and leaped down among the savage lions without hesitation, recovered the glove, and climbed back to his place in a few moments. Then he threw the glove right in the lady's face.
King Francis cried out, "Well and bravely done! but it was not love that made you lady set you such a dangerous thing to do, but her vanity!"

One of the boys in a village was sent out into fields to look after the sheep.
“Mind you take care of them and don’t let them stray,” said the villagers to him. “And keep a good look out for wolves. Don’t go far away: and if you see a wolf coming near the sheep, shout out ‘Wolf’ as loudly as you can, and we will come at once to help you.”
“All right!” said the boy, “I will be careful.”
So every morning he drove his sheep out to the hillside and watched them all day. And when evening came, he drove them home again.
But after a few days he got rather tired of this lonely life. Nothing happened and no wolves came. So one afternoon he said to himself: “These villagers have given me a very stupid job. I think I will play a trick on them just for fun.”
So he got up and began shouting as loudly as he could, “Wolf! Wolf!”
The people in the village heard him, and at once they came running with sticks.

To tell even a simple story we requires some practice. An uneducated person generally tells a tale badly. He does not mentally look ahead as he tells it and plans it out. So he repeats himself, omits important items, which he drags in afterwards out of place, and dwells too long on minor details and fails to emphasise the leading points. To write a good story, you must have the whole plot clear in your mind, and the main points arranged in their proper order.
Please find the stories in the Blog Archive at your right hand side bar, thanks.

Def-- The words a or an and the are called Articles. They come before nouns.
There are two Articles- a (or an) and the.
A or an is called the Indefinite Article, because it usually leaves indefinite the person or thing spoken of;as,

• A doctor, that is, any doctor.

The is called the Definite Articles, because it points out some particular person or thing; as,

• He saw the doctor, meaning some particular doctor.

The indefinite article is used before singular countable nouns, e.g.

• A book, an orange, a girl.

The definite article is used before singular countable nouns, plural nouns and uncountable nouns, e.g.

• The book, the books, the milk.

An adjective used attributively is generally placed immediately before the Nouns;as,

• King Francis was a hearty king, and loved a royal sport.
• Where are you going, my pretty maid, with your rosy cheeks and golden hair?
• O Captain ! my Captain ! our fearful trip is done.

Observe the difference in meaning between:

•  a great nobleman's, and
   a nobleman's great son.

In poetry, however, the Adjective is frequently placed after the Noun;as,

• Children dear, was it yesterday?
• We heard the sweet bells over the bay.
• O man with sisters dear !

When several Adjectives are attached to one noun they are sometimes placed after it for emphasis;as,

• There dwelt a miller hale and bold.
• The king, fearless and resolute, at once advanced.
• Franklin had a great genius, original, sagacious, and inventive.

When some words or phrase is joined to the Adjective to explain its meaning, the Adjective is placed after its noun;as,

• He was a man fertile in resource.
• A Sikh, taller than any of his comrades, rushed forward.

In certain phrases the Adjective always comes after the Noun;as,

• Heir apparent, time immemorial, lord paramount, viceroy elect, letters patent, knights temporal, notary public, body politic, God Almighty.

Adjectives are often used as Nouns.
The cautious (= cautious person) are not always cowards.
The rich (= rich) people know not how the poor (= poor people) live.
The wicked (= wicked people) flee when no man pursueth, but the righteous (= righteous people) are bold as a lion.
Blessed are the meek.
The future (= futurity) is unknown to us.
He is lover of the beautiful (= beauty in general)
a) Those derived from Proper Nouns; as, Australians, Canadians, Italians.
b) Some denoting persons;as, juniors, seniors, mortals, inferiors, superiors, nobles, criminals, savages, elders, minors.
c) A few denoting things generally;as, secrets, totals, liquids, solids, valuables.
{Some adjectives are used as Nouns only in the plural;as, valuables, eatables.}
4. In certain phrases;as,
In general, in future, in short, in secret, before long, at present, for good;

As the following examples show, it is possible to change the degree of comparison of an adjective in a sentence, without changing the meaning of sentence:
Superlative                            -Lead is the heaviest of all metals.
Comparative                         -Lead is heavier than all other metals.

Most adjective of one syllable, and some of more than one, form the Comparative by adding er and the Superlative by adding est to the positive.

• Positive                                               Comparative                                       Superlative
• Sweet                                                 sweeter                                               sweetest
• Small                                                  smaller                                                smallest
• Clever                                                cleverer                                               cleverest
• Great                                                 greater                                                 greatest
• Young                                               younger                                                youngest

When the positive ends in e, only r and st are added.

• Brave                                               braver                                                   bravest
• Fine                                                  finer                                                      finest
• Able                                                 abler                                                     ablest
• Noble                                               nobler                                                   noblest
• Wise                                                wiser                                                     wisest

When the positive ends in Y, preceded by a constant, the Y is changed into I before adding er and est.

• Happy                                             happier                                                  happiest
• Easy                                                easier                                                    easiest
• Heavy                                             heavier                                                   heaviest
• Merry                                             merrier                                                   merriest
• Wealthy                                          wealthier                                                wealthiest

1. Tom mango is sweet.
2. John's mango is sweeter than Tom's.
3. Paul's mango is the sweetest of all.
In sentence 1, the adjective sweet merely tells us that Tom mango has the quality of sweetness, without saying how much of this quality it has.
In sentence 2, the adjective sweeter tells us that Jon's mango, compared with Tom's, has more of  the quality of sweetness.
In sentence 3, the adjective sweetest tells us that of all these mangoes Paul's mango has the greatest amount or highest degree of the quality of sweetness.

We thus see that adjectives change in form (sweet, sweeter, sweetest) to show comparison. They are called the three Degrees of Comparison.
The Adjective sweet is said to be in the Positive Degree.
The Adjective sweeter is said to be in the Comparative Degree.
The Adjective sweetest is said to be in the Superlative Degree.
The positive degree of an adjective is the adjective in its simple form. It is used to denote the mere existence of some quality of what we speak about. It is used when no comparison is made.
The Comparative Degree of an adjective denotes a higher degree of the quantity than the positive, and is used when two things (or sets of things) are compared;as,
This boy is stronger than that.
Which of these two pens is the better?
Apples are dearer than oranges.

How adjectives are formed?
Here you will learn adjectives are formed from nouns, verbs and other adjectives.
1. Many adjectives are formed from Nouns.
   Nouns                 Adjectives                                Noun                         Adjective
   Boy                     Boyish                                        Dirt                            dirty
   Fool                    foolish                                       Storm                        stormy
   Care                   careful                                       Pardon                      pardonable
   Play                    playful                                        Outrage                     outrageous
   Hope                  hopeful                                      Courage                    courageous
   venture               venturesome                            Glory                          glorious

2. Some adjectives are formed from verbs.
   Verb                                Adjective
   Tire                                  tireless
   Talk                                 talkative
   Cease                              ceaseless
   Move                               moveable
3. Some adjectives are formed from other adjectives.
   Adjective                         Adjective
   Tragic                              tragical
   Whole                             wholesome
   Three                               threefold
   Black                               blackish
   White                              whitish
   Sick                                sickly

Adjective may be divided into the following classes:
1) Adjectives Of Quality (or Descriptive Adjective) show the kind or quality of a person or thing;as,
Kolkata is a large city.
He is an honest man.
The foolish old crow tried to sing.
This is a Grammar of the English Language.
Adjective form from Proper Nouns (e.g. French Wines, Turkish tobacco, Indian tea, etc.) are some times called Proper Adjectives. They are generally classed with adjective of Quality.
Adjective of Quality answer the question : Of what kind?
2. Adjectives of Quantity show how much of a thing is meant;as,
I ate some rice.
He showed much patience.
He has little intelligence.
He has lost all his wealth.
He claimed his half share of the booty.
Adjective of Quantity answer the question: How much?

Def---A word used with a noun to describe or point out, the person, animal, place or thing which the noun names, or to tell the number or quantity, is called an Adjective.
Read the following sentences:
1. Sita is a clever girl. (Girl of what kind?)
2. I don't like that boy. (Which boy?)
3. He gave me five mangoes. (How many boys?)
4. There is little time for preparation. (How much time?)
In sentence 1, "clever" shows what kind of girl Sita is; or, in other words, "clever" describes the girl Sita.
In sentence 2, "that", points out which boy is meant?
In sentence 3, "five" shows how many mangoes he gave me?
In sentence 4, "little" shows how much time there is for preparation?
So we may define an Adjective as a word used with a noun to add something for its meaning. [Adjective means added to].