Page 6 - Basic English Grammar Student Textbook short

Basic English Grammar

By Tammy Larsen, B.S., M.A.

Study Section 1: Introduction and Grammar Overview

1.1 Connect

For many people, grammar may not be the most exciting topic, but it is surprisingly relevant and
helpful to those who desire to understand and appreciate the Bible.

"Consider what I say," says Paul in 2 Tim. 2:7, "for the Lord shall give you understanding in all things"
(ASV). Paul attaches a wonderful promise to the word consider. The Lord will give understanding to
the one who considers His word. When we study the Bible, we may consider many things, all of which are
important: vocabulary, word usage, context, historical background—to name a few. Of course, grammar is
another aspect of Scripture for us to consider.

Grammar is the study of how words are combined to form sentences. It involves the study of the different parts of speech
(nouns, verbs, adjectives, and so on) and the relationship between those elements, including how words function in a
sentence. A knowledge of grammar provides a vocabulary to discuss how the language works. A better understanding
of grammar provides you with a better understanding of God's Word in your own personal study and may assist you
when teaching or preaching the Word. In addition, increasing your grammar skills will help you with your writing skills.

1.2 Sentence Structure

The word mechanics refers to aspects of the written language that are not shared by speaking; for
example, spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.

Learning and applying what you will learn in this course will help you with the following current and
future writing tasks:
• assignments, as well as quiz and test responses for future coursework
• your sponsor letters
• other course papers
• various types of communication for work and education

Various grammatical elements will be presented in detail throughout this class; however, we will begin with a
quick overview because it is helpful when studying one grammatical element to know the definitions of others
as well.

Sentence Parts
The basic building blocks of any language are words. These building blocks are put together to form complete
thoughts called sentences. Within a sentence, each word functions in a specific way; each word is used as a part
of speech and serves a specific role within the sentence. Sentences may be very simple in structure or may be
very complex.

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