WORD FORM

WORD FORM

In English, there are traditionally 9 parts of speech:

Noun                                       conjunction            article

Adjective                                preposition

Verb                                     pronoun

Adverb                                    interjection

Before continuing, how would you define the above grammatical terms? Give an example of each.

Part of speech	Definition	Example
Noun
Adjective
Verb
Adverb

Discuss what part of speech would be used in the gaps below:

1.  The film I saw last night was _____________.

2. She ________ when she found out she had passed her exam.

3. I drove ____________ because I was late for the interview

4.I bought a ___________ when I was on holiday.

Usually, most related forms change their endings by adding or changing a suffix.  A suffix is an ending piece that can be removed, revealing the base form of the word.  With very few exceptions, suffixes do NOT change the meaning of the word.  They can only change the part of speech, according to the patterns in the following table:

COMMON SUFFIXES IN ENGLISH

AdjectiveàNoun ity                                cruelàcruelty, stupidàstupidity             ness                             gladàgladness, unhappyàunhappiness             th                                 longàlength, trueàtruth

AdjectiveàVerb             en                                brightàbrighten, broadàbroaden             ify                                clearàclarify, intenseàintensify             ize                                finalàfinalize, popularàpopularize

AdjectiveàAdverb             ly                                 niceànicely, predictableàpredictably

NounàNoun             hood                            brotheràbrotherhood, neighboràneighborhood             ism                               MarxàMarxism, raceàracism             ship                              friendàfriendship, scholaràscholarship

NounàAdjective             al                                 emotionàemotional, musicàmusical             ese                               CantonàCantonese, JapanàJapanese ful                                coloràcolorful, useàuseful             ic, ical                          atomàatomic, biologyàbiological             ish                                FinnàFinnish, selfàselfish             ive                               expenseàexpensive, productàproductive             less                              coloràcolorless, useàuseless             like                              childàchildlike, ladyàladylike             ous                               dangeràdangerous, fameàfamous y                                  dressàdressy, noiseànoisy

NounàAdverb             ward                            backàbackward, skyàskyward

VerbàNoun             al                                 denyàdenial, refuseàrefusal             ance                             appearàappearance, maintainàmaintenance ence                             differàdifference, excelàexcellence             ency                             dependàdependency, sufficeàsufficiency             er                                 driveàdriver, teachàteacher ment                            argueàargument, establishàestablishment             sion                              admitàadmission, expressàexpression             tion                              donateàdonation, operateàoperation             ure                               closeàclosure, departàdeparture

VerbàAdjective             able                              agreeàagreeable, washàwashable             ant                               importàimportant, pleaseàpleasant             ent                               differàdifferent, excelàexcellent             some                            botheràbothersome, worryàworrisome

Brainstorm in your groups any other suffixes you know that are not included in this chart.  What is the part of speech of each one?

Communicate, communication and communicative are related word forms where the part of speech changes through the use of suffixes.  Communicate, the verb, is the base form.  To obtain the noun, we add the noun suffix –tion; to obtain the adjective, we add the adjective suffix –ive.

Keep in mind that the best tool at your disposal for avoiding this type of word form error—where you use the wrong part of speech—is your dictionary. Related forms always have the same beginning, so they will be grouped close together in the dictionary.  Once you decide what part of speech you need, look up the form of the word you know and check which suffix is needed.  In addition, when you learn a new word, look it up in the dictionary and learn its related forms at the same time.

Before continuing, look at the pairs decide/decision and worry/worrisome, where the beginning of the word has a small spelling change before the suffix is added.  Can you think of other pairs like this?

_____________________________________________

Word form doesn’t always change when the part of speech changes.  Sometimes a single word form can serve more than one grammatical function.  Take open, which can be both a verb and an adjective.  In a sentence like 

X“The shop already opens, so we can stop in to buy some shoes,”

These two parts of speech are being confused. Normally, such an error will be classified as a word form error even though the spelling doesn’t change when the part of speech does.

Independent learning class activities in groups:

ING and ED ending Adjectives

There are some areas that prove to be problematic for learners of English with regard to adjective forms. One of these is ING v ED adjectives. For example, the difference in meaning and use of adjectives such as excited / exciting; frightened / frightening etc. In groups or pairs, discuss and analyze the difference between these uses. Use your laptops and search online to help you find these answers: Write down the rules here with example sentences. Feedback with your trainer.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Comparative adjectives

When we compare two or more things, the form of the adjective sometimes changes. Big → bigger. Again, research this area in order to correct / explain sentences. Prepare a group presentation on your findings to the rest of your class or write the rules and sentence examples here.

Verb forms.

A verb has many different forms that are used in different grammatical functions.

Infinitive	Base form	gerund
To eat	Eat	eating
Present form	Past form	Past participle
Eat / eats	Ate	eaten

Students encounter difficulty in knowing when to use each form. In groups discuss, analyze and either present your findings as a group to the rest of the class or feedback with your trainer and/or write down the rules with examples here.

Websites:

http://rinkworks.com/words/wordforms.shtml  

Task 1: In groups or pairs, find and correct the mistakes in these sentences. Write down the corrections.

1.       

X  All the teachers want to success in their Aptis test.

X  The most important argue against prostitution is that it degrades women.

2.       

X  The public library is close on Sundays, so we have to study at home although it is very noisy.

X  It is quite funny to visit Jonker street at the weekend, when it is crowded and colourful.

X  It is important to work hardly in order to achieve your goals in life.

3.       

X  The students are always so boring in their History class because of the teacher’s lecture style.

X  All the car chases and shootouts in the movie made it very excited for me to watch.

4.       

X  Apart from eat more vegetables, getting more sleep is a good way to improve our health.

X  For thousands of years, people who live in the rainforest have know which plants can be used as medicines.

5.       

X  It is more cheaper to live in Melaka than to live in areas like Kuala Lumpur or Penang.

X  Gaining satisfaction from a job you love will make you more happy than earning a lot of money from a job you hate.

6.       

X  Many students are lack of independent learning skills because the education system spoon-feeds them.

Task 2

In the first box next to each original word, write its part of speech.  In the second box, remove the suffix and write the base word that remains.  In the third box, write the part of speech of this base word.

Original word	Its part of speech	Unsuffixed word	Its part of speech
1.  population	noun	populate	verb
2.  traditional
3.  approximately
4.  difference
5.  brotherhood
6.  continuous
7.  persuasive
8.  speaker
9.  uniqueness
10.  successful
11.  requirement
12. concentration
13.  economic
14.  acceptable
15.  departure
16.  broaden
17.  capitalism
18.  priceless
19.  globalize
20.  possibility

Task 3

Complete the following passage by filling in the blanks with a different form of each word in brackets.  You will need to delete, add or change a suffix in each case.

WHOLE PERSON DEVELOPMENT

Apart from academic ________(achieve), an educated person is also expected to have a balanced ________(person) development in the following aspects:

·         Spiritual—University _________(educate) is a critical developmental stage for students.  They are in a major __________(transition) period searching for self-identity and values in life.  The spiritual dimension refers to a value system or a _________(philosophical) of life that includes _________(ethics) and moral judgment to guide our behaviours, to show us the purpose and meaning of life.

·         Intellectual—Empowering the mind to ______ (acquisition) knowledge, to reason, to think and to make judgments.  We need to learn new knowledge and skills to enhance our problem-solving skills through _________(formality) and informal education.

·         Physical—With the help of regular exercises and _________(health) eating behaviours, we can maintain our physical __________(fit).  Having a healthy body also enables us to maintain a positive image about our physical _________ (appear) that will in turn contribute to our self-confidence.  We also need physical ________(energetic) to handle a heavy workload.

·         Social—Part of human nature is to live in a community.  For our _______   (mentality) well-being, we need to be connected with others and build up _________ (satisfaction) interpersonal relationships.  Learning basic __________  (communicate) skills and interpersonal skills are vital to your future _________ (successful).

·         Aesthetic—Living in a modern society like United Kingdom, people are generally __________(pragmatism) and materialistic in outlook.  We should learn to _______(appreciation) the beauty in life, nature, arts and literature as well as possess skills in ________ (creativity) arts and crafts.  Participating in cultural activities can ________ (broad) and refresh our minds too.

·         Emotional—Recent studies on psychology __________ (suggestion) that emotional intelligence is a very important success factor in life.  Managing the _________(emotionally) state of mind helps us to understand and be aware of our ______(truth) feelings.  Students have to learn to share their emotions with others and adopt an appropriate stress coping ________ (strategic).

·         Career—Career achievement is a very fulfilling experience in today's working world.  Besides ________ (finance) rewards, a suitable career can be an excellent chance for us to prove our worth.  Students should ________(exploratory) various career opportunities and decide on a feasible career plan as early as possible.

Task 4

Complete the following passage by filling in the blanks with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am _______(write) because I would like to express my interest in the position of customer relations clerk that was _______(advertise) in the The Star on Saturday.

As you can see from the curriculum vitae that I have _______ (attach), I will be _______ (graduate) this year from USM with a degree in English for Professional Communication.  _______ (work) for a prestigious company like yours after ________(receive) my degree has long been my goal, and I hope that you will give my application serious consideration.

Let me tell you something about my background so that you can see more clearly why I would be a good choice for the position.  First of all, I have ______(hold) a part-time job in a clothing store for the past two years, and during this time I have learned how ______(deal) with all types of customer, including those who are very ________(demand).  I remember_______ (help) one difficult woman last month.  Although she insisted that I stay with her for 20 minutes, I was patient the entire time.  My goal has always been ________(make) the customer feel that he or she has received the best possible service.

Secondly, I was the president of the Film Club at university, and in this role I had many opportunities ________ (develop) organizational skills that will serve me well in any future career.  As president, I was responsible for _________(schedule) meetings and screenings, ________(choose) the films that we would show, and ________(arrange) to receive prints of the films from the distributors.  _________(handle) all of these tasks, on top of my studies and my part-time job, required good time management.

Thirdly, I spent one semester overseas at a university in Canada.  This was an ________ (amaze) experience for me.  I was extremely happy _______(have) the chance to use my English in everyday life, and my proficiency improved a lot.  I know that a good English level will be vital _____ (perform) the duties of a customer services clerk, and you can be sure that I will speak with English-speaking customers with confidence.  Since my return to Malaysia from Canada, I have continued _______(practice) English with native speakers whenever I could.

I look forward to ________ (hear) from you very soon.  I would be very ________(please) to come for an interview whenever it is convenient for you.

Yours sincerely,

Noor Omar

Task 5

Proofread the following paragraph for word form errors.  There are no other errors present.  Correct each error as you find it.

            I would prefer to remain in Malaysia to finish my education instead of studying overseas.  Why?  The main reason is money.  Spending a year at a foreign university would be expensiver than if I stay here in Malaysia.  My parents and I would be lack of funds to pay for the airfare and the expense of the student hostel as we are not rich.  In addition, I would miss my family a lot if I went overseas.  The homesick would be terrible, and I think I would be frightening if I had to handle every situation without help from my parents.  I have never been on my own before; indeed, I am seldomly all alone in my family’s flat.  I cannot imagine how loneliness it would be to be independent.  I am not ready for this yet!  My last reason for wish to remain in Malaysia is my poor English level.  Few of my classmates abroad would be Malay speakers, so I could not work in a group to understand the course materials.  I would have to study so hardly in order to pass my exams.  I am worried that I would fail!  I would likes a little baby, unable to communicate with others and completely helpless.  Overall, I think it is better to stay in Malaysia because here I have the support I need to succeed.