 An interjection is a word or short phrase used to express sudden feeling like anger, fear, surprise, joy, or disappointment. Interjections, such as the following, have no grammatical relation to any other word in a sentence.  Gee Wow No Whew Never Yes  Strong interjections are followed by exclamation points. Mild interjections are  followed by commas.  The examples below are from The Crucible. “Oh, my God! God help me! Betty. Child. Dear child.” “Aye, sir. I pray for her.”

1. Alas Salem is about to have a call from the devil. 2. Well do you believe those women really were witches? 3. Why I’m sure my name is blameless, sir. 4. Oh, bosh Mr. Proctor, we were dancin’ in the woods and my uncle leaped in upon us and frightened her. 5. No no Betty never flew into the air, Goody Putnam!

1. Enough I’ll have no more of this, Abigail! 2. What Tituba, have you sold yourself to the devil? 3. Fie Rebecca and Mrs. Putnam, cease this angry talk immediately. 4. Ah Elizabeth, trust me, trust me. 5. Impossible Sarah Good is not an evil woman.

 A complete sentence has two basic parts: a subject and a predicate. The complete subject includes all the words that identify the person, place, thing, or idea the sentence is about. The complete predicate includes all the words that tell or ask something about the subject.  Each complete subject contains a simple subject that names exactly whom or what the sentence is about. The complete predicate contains a simple predicate (the verb) that tells what the subject does or is. The verb may be one word or several words, but it does not contain modifiers.  In the example below, the complete subject is separated from the complete predicate by a vertical line. The simple subject and the verb are in bold type. Kate Chopin’s brilliant story | demands from the reader great sensitivity toward the status of women one hundred years ago.

1. The main character in “The Story of an Hour” is Mrs. Mallard. 2. Young Mrs. Mallard with her ill heart receives the news of her husband’s death. 3. Delivering the bad news, her sister Josephine tells her in broken sentences about the railroad disaster. 4. Mrs. Mallard’s stifled life changes within the matter of an hour. 5. Sitting in her room with tears in her eyes, she begins to recognize this thing coming to her.

1. The vacant stare fades with her growing awareness of her freedom. 2. All sorts of wonderful days stretch out radiantly before her. 3. The joy flooding her heart makes her breathless. 4. Like a goddess she descends the stairs. 5. Brently Mallard, carrying his traveling bag and umbrella, comes through the front door.

1. The vacant stare fades with her growing awareness of her freedom. 2. All sorts of wonderful days stretch out radiantly before her. 3. The joy flooding her heart makes her breathless. 4. Like a goddess she descends the stairs. 5. Brently Mallard, carrying his traveling bag and umbrella, comes through the front door.

A prepositional phrase is a group of words consisting of a preposition, its object, and any modifiers of the object. A prepositional phrase acts as a modifier in a sentence. In his poem “I Hear America Singing,” Walt Whitman celebrates the American spirit. Clearly, Whitman was moved by his encounters with people from all walks of life. Exercise: Underline the prepositional phrase in each of the following sentences. Underline the subject of the sentence twice and circle the verb. 1. Free verse is a form of poetry that does not have regular patterns of rhyme and meter. 2. A master of free verse, Whitman wrote revolutionary poetry.

Copy each sentence. Underline the correct verb in each sentence. 1. Perhaps I (are, am) wrong. 2. All of the ice (has, have) melted since Monday’s storm. 3. The most beautiful sight (is, are) the tropical gardens on Ria Island. 4. Everybody (take, takes) turns serving the refreshments at the tea. 5. My favorite vegetable (are, is) turnips. 6. Both of the tennis players (is, are) excellent.

Copy each sentence. Underline the correct verb in each sentence. 1. (Has, Have) you seen that movie, Chelsea? 2. Some of the girls (has, have) left the party early. 3. The folders, not the notebook, (are, is) what you need for classwork today. 4. (Does, Do) all of these children know what to do during a fire drill? 5. My aunt (is, are) planning to move to Eden Valley. 6. Many of the cows in the Smalleys’ herd (grazes, graze) on our pasture.

Copy each sentence. Underline the correct verb in each sentence. 1. The flowers on the dining room table (looks, look) beautiful. 2. Each of the Maramoto sisters (has, have) a pet cat. 3. There (go, goes) the Bellville twins. 4. Nobody (wants, want) a ride to Fisher Lake. 5. Spanish (are, is) Ella’s favorite subject this year. 6. (Have, Has) any of this mail been opened?

Copy each sentence. Underline the correct verb in each sentence. 1. (Are, Is) there other choices in this situation? 2. No one (understand, understands) the directions on the instruction sheet. 3. Where (were, was) you last night when I called? 4. Many of the tickets to the carnival (has, have) been sold. 5. The tigers (pace, paces) back and forth in the huge cage. 6. (Is, Are) there anyone here who has seen Elena this morning?

Copy each sentence. Underline the correct verb in each sentence. 1. A mass of dark clouds (are, is) blowing in from the north. 2. Neither of the houses (have, has) been sold. 3. Bill Andros, not his older brothers, (own,owns) the antique car. 4. Each of the first graders (draw, draws) a picture of the sun. 5. Not even the winners (were, was) happy with the judge’s decision on the lawsuit. 6. Everyone (takes, take) pride in the committee’s work on preventing pollution.

Copy each sentence. Underline the correct verb in each sentence. 1. The hammers from John’s tool set (was, were) lost. 2. Either the kitten or the puppy (has, have) chewed two holes in Aunt Alma’s slipper. 3. Shrimp casserole (is, are) to be served at the club luncheon. 4. None of the plants (was, were) ruined by the heavy rains. 5. The main attraction of the stage show (are, is) the antics or the two comedians. 6. If one of the twins (get, gets) a new jacket, the other will too. 7. The berries in this bowl (taste, tastes) sour. 8. Several of the crowd (want, wants) to ask the speakers some questions. 9. Charles, along with Maria and Dan, (was, were) elected to the Student Council. 10. Some of the talent show (were, was) good, but a few of the acts (were, was) terrible.