2.1 INTRODUCTION TO SENTENCE ELEMENTS

Objective:
To understand the basic components that make up English sentences, including subject, verb, object, complement, and adverbial, and how they work together to form clear, grammatically correct statements.

🧱 WHAT IS A SENTENCE?

A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought. It must include at least a subject and a verb, and often includes other parts that add meaning.

Example:
She (subject) is reading (verb) a book (object) in the park (adverbial).

🧩 CORE SENTENCE ELEMENTS

🔹 1. SUBJECT (S)

The person, place, or thing that performs the action or is described.
Usually a noun or pronoun
Comes before the main verb

Examples:
John plays football.
She is tired.
The book is interesting.

🔹 2. VERB (V)

The action or state in the sentence. Every English sentence must include a verb.
Action verbs: run, eat, play
State verbs: be, seem, have

Examples:
They study English.
I am happy.

🔹 3. OBJECT (O)

The person or thing that receives the action of the verb.
• Direct Object: receives the action directly
→ She reads a book.
• Indirect Object: benefits from the action
→ He gave me a gift.

🔹 4. COMPLEMENT (C)

Gives additional information about the subject or object, especially with linking verbs like “be”, “seem”, “become”.

Examples:
He is a doctor.
That sounds strange.

🔹 5. ADVERBIAL (A)

Tells us how, when, where, or why something happens.
Can be an adverb, phrase, or clause
Often answers when? where? how?

Examples:
She works hard.
We met at 6 p.m..
He lives in London.

🧮 TYPICAL SENTENCE STRUCTURES

Structure  Example
SV  She sings.
SVO  I read books.
SVC  He is a teacher.
SVOO  She gave me a gift.
SVOA  They sent a letter yesterday.
SVOC  They elected him president.

❗ COMMON ERRORS TO AVOID

• ❌ Omitting the subject: Is raining → ✔ It is raining
• ❌ Double subjects: My mother she is nice → ✔ My mother is nice
• ❌ Confusing object and complement: She is a beautiful → ✔ She is beautiful / She is a beautiful woman

2.2 THE ENGLISH ARTICLES: "A", "AN", "THE"

Objective:
To understand the use of definite and indefinite articles in English, recognize when to use "a", "an", or "the", and know when no article is required.

🔤 WHAT ARE ARTICLES?

Articles are small words placed before a noun to indicate whether it refers to something specific or general.

English has two types of articles:
• Indefinite articles: a / an → general or non-specific items
• Definite article: the → specific or previously known items

🟢 1. INDEFINITE ARTICLES: “A” AND “AN”

Use "a" before words that begin with a consonant sound:
→ a cat, a house, a university (you-ni-ver-si-ty = consonant sound /ju/)

Use "an" before words that begin with a vowel sound:
→ an apple, an idea, an hour (h is silent = /aʊə/)

✅ Important: It’s the sound, not the spelling, that matters.

Article  Word  Pronunciation  Correct?
a  orange  /ˈɒrɪndʒ/  ❌
an  orange  /ˈɒrɪndʒ/  ✔
a  university  /ˌjuːnɪˈvɜːsɪti/  ✔
an  hour  /aʊə/  ✔

🔵 2. DEFINITE ARTICLE: “THE”

Use "the" when referring to something specific or already known to the speaker and listener.

USE “THE” WHEN:
The noun is already mentioned
→ I saw a dog. The dog was barking.

There is only one of its kind
→ the sun, the Earth

Both speaker and listener know what is meant
→ Close the door.

With superlatives and ordinals
→ the best student, the first time

With unique locations and geographical terms
→ the Amazon, the Eiffel Tower, the United States

✅ Pronunciation:
• /ðə/ before consonant sounds → the car
• /ði/ before vowel sounds → the apple

🚫 3. ZERO ARTICLE (NO ARTICLE)

Don’t use articles before:
• Uncountable nouns when speaking in general
→ Water is essential.

• Plural countable nouns in general statements
→ Cats are independent animals.

• Languages, countries, meals, days, months
→ I speak English. / We eat lunch at noon.

⚠ But: I had a coffee yesterday. → specific item of an uncountable noun

❗ COMMON MISTAKES

Incorrect  Correct  Why?
The water is important.  Water is important.  General statement – no article
She is a best student.  She is the best student.  Superlative requires "the"
An university is big.  A university is big.  /ju/ = consonant sound
He went to the work.  He went to work.  No article for routine activity

2.3 COUNTABLE AND UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS

Objective:
To distinguish between countable and uncountable nouns in English, learn how to use them correctly with articles, quantifiers, and verbs.

🔢 WHAT ARE COUNTABLE AND UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS?

In English, nouns are classified into two categories depending on whether they can be counted as individual units.

🟢 1. COUNTABLE NOUNS

These are things you can count: one, two, three…
They can be singular or plural and used with a/an in the singular form.

Singular  Plural
a book  books
an apple  apples
one chair  two chairs

Quantifiers used:
many
a few
several
a number of

✅ Examples:
I have two pens and a notebook.
There are many chairs in the room.

🔵 2. UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS

These are things that cannot be counted individually, often substances, abstract ideas, or categories of mass.
They do not take plural forms or "a/an".

Examples
water, milk, sugar
information, advice, knowledge
money, furniture, traffic

Quantifiers used:
much
a little
a bit of
some
a piece of (for units)

✅ Examples:
Do you have any sugar?
She gave me some advice.
I need a piece of paper. (not a paper)

❗ IMPORTANT NOTES

Some nouns are uncountable in English, but countable in Spanish:
information → uncountable in English → ❌ an information
advice, furniture, homework, luggage = always uncountable

Some nouns can be both countable and uncountable, with a change in meaning:

Word  Countable Example  Uncountable Example
coffee  Two coffees, please. (cups)  I love coffee. (the substance)
hair  I found a hair in my soup.  He has curly hair.
paper  I bought three papers. (newspapers)  I need paper to print.

📏 GRAMMAR RULES

Countable Nouns  Uncountable Nouns
Can be singular/plural  Only singular form (no -s)
Use a/an, many, few  Use some, much, little
Can say how many  Can say how much

❌ COMMON ERRORS BY SPANISH SPEAKERS

Incorrect  Correct
An information was missing.  Some information was missing.
She gave me a good advice.  She gave me good advice.
I have many homework.  I have a lot of homework.

2.4 SINGULAR AND PLURAL FORMS

Objective:
To understand the rules for forming plural nouns in English, recognize irregular forms, and apply correct subject-verb agreement with singular and plural nouns.

🔤 BASIC RULE: ADD -S

For most countable nouns, the plural is formed by adding -s to the singular form.

Singular  Plural
book  books
car  cars
apple  apples

🧠 SPELLING RULES FOR PLURAL NOUNS

1. NOUNS ENDING IN -S, -SH, -CH, -X, -Z → ADD -ES

Singular  Plural
bus  buses
watch  watches
box  boxes

2. NOUNS ENDING IN CONSONANT + -Y → CHANGE -Y TO -IES

Singular  Plural
baby  babies
city  cities

But if the noun ends in vowel + -y, just add -s:

Singular  Plural
boy  boys
key  keys

3. NOUNS ENDING IN -F OR -FE → CHANGE TO -VES

Singular  Plural
leaf  leaves
knife  knives

⚠ Some exceptions:
roof → roofs, belief → beliefs

🔄 IRREGULAR PLURAL NOUNS

Some nouns do not follow regular rules and must be memorized:

Singular  Plural
man  men
woman  women
child  children
foot  feet
tooth  teeth
mouse  mice
person  people

🧳 UNCHANGING PLURALS

Some nouns have the same singular and plural form:

Word  Singular Example  Plural Example
sheep  One sheep is in the field.  Five sheep are grazing.
fish  I caught a fish.  We caught three fish.
deer  A deer ran away.  Several deer were spotted.

✏ NOUNS ONLY USED IN PLURAL FORM

Some nouns are always plural and take plural verbs:
clothes
scissors
trousers
glasses
headphones

Example: These trousers are too tight.

⚠ COMMON ERRORS TO AVOID

Incorrect  Correct  Explanation
Childs  Children  Irregular plural
Sheeps  Sheep  No -s needed
Informations  Information  Uncountable noun
This books is interesting  These books are interesting  Agreement: plural subject/plural verb

✅ SUBJECT–VERB AGREEMENT REMINDER

• Singular noun → takes singular verb
→ The book is on the table.

• Plural noun → takes plural verb
→ The books are on the shelf.

2.5 ADJECTIVES AND WORD ORDER

Objective:
To understand how to use adjectives correctly in English, including their position in a sentence, order when multiple adjectives are used, and agreement rules.

🧾 WHAT IS AN ADJECTIVE?

An adjective is a word that describes or modifies a noun. It gives information about appearance, size, color, origin, emotion, and more.

Examples:
a red apple
an expensive car
a tall, intelligent man

📍 POSITION OF ADJECTIVES

🔹 1. BEFORE A NOUN (ATTRIBUTIVE)

Most adjectives go before the noun they describe.
a new phone
the blue sky

🔹 2. AFTER LINKING VERBS (PREDICATIVE)

Adjectives can also come after verbs like "be", "seem", "feel", "become".
She is tired.
The cake smells delicious.
They are happy.

🧱 ADJECTIVE ORDER (WHEN USING MORE THAN ONE)

When using two or more adjectives before a noun, they follow a specific order in English.

Opinion – Size – Age – Shape – Color – Origin – Material – Purpose + noun

| Example: | a beautiful (opinion)
| → | a beautiful small (size)
| → | a beautiful small old (age)
| → | a beautiful small old round wooden French writing desk

✅ Natural version: a beautiful small round wooden French desk

Memorize this order using the acronym: OSASCOMP

❗ NO AGREEMENT IN GENDER OR NUMBER

Unlike Spanish, English adjectives:
Do not change for plural nouns
Do not agree in gender

Examples:
A nice boy / Two nice girls
Un niño simpático → a nice boy
Una niña simpática → a nice girl

🚫 COMMON MISTAKES

Incorrect  Correct  Why?
The house white  The white house  Adjective goes before noun
She is a girl very smart  She is a very smart girl  Word order
Two reds cars  Two red cars  Adjective doesn’t take plural form
A dress beautiful blue  A beautiful blue dress  Order: opinion before color

🧠 BONUS TIP: ADJECTIVE + PREPOSITION COMBINATIONS

Many adjectives are followed by specific prepositions:

Adjective  Preposition  Example
afraid  of  She’s afraid of spiders.
good  at  He’s good at math.
interested  in  I’m interested in history.
tired  Of  They’re tired of waiting.

2.6 AFFIRMATIVE AND NEGATIVE SENTENCES

Objective:
To learn how to construct affirmative (positive) and negative sentences in English using correct word order and auxiliary verbs.

✅ AFFIRMATIVE SENTENCES

An affirmative sentence states something true or factual. It follows a basic structure depending on the type of verb used.

🔹 1. WITH THE VERB “TO BE”

Structure  Subject + “to be” + complement

Example  She is a teacher.
  They are happy.

“To be” changes according to the subject:
I am, You/We/They are, He/She/It is

🔹 2. WITH OTHER VERBS (PRESENT SIMPLE)

Structure  Subject + base verb (+ s/es in 3rd person)

Example  I like coffee. / He likes tea.

❗ In the third person singular (he, she, it):
Add -s to regular verbs → runs, eats, speaks

❌ NEGATIVE SENTENCES

To negate a sentence in English, we use auxiliary verbs:
“to be” → use not
Other verbs → use do/does + not in present simple

🔹 1. WITH THE VERB “TO BE”

Structure  Subject + “to be” + not + complement

Example  He is not tired. / We aren’t ready.

Contractions are common:
• is not → isn’t
• are not → aren’t
• am not has no contraction form (I’m not)

🔹 2. WITH OTHER VERBS (PRESENT SIMPLE)

Structure  Subject + do/does + not + base verb

Example  I do not like fish. / She does not eat meat.

Contractions:
• do not → don’t
• does not → doesn’t

❗ Use the base verb after “do/does”, not the -s form:
• ✔ He doesn’t like (not likes)

🧠 QUICK COMPARISON

Affirmative  Negative
I work every day.  I don’t work on Sundays.
She eats fruit.  She doesn’t eat meat.
They are students.  They aren’t teachers.

❗ COMMON ERRORS BY SPANISH SPEAKERS

Incorrect  Correct  Why?
She don't like coffee.  She doesn't like coffee.  Wrong auxiliary for 3rd person
He not is ready.  He is not ready. / He isn’t ready.  Word order with “to be”
I am not agree.  I don’t agree.  “Agree” is not an adjective, needs “do”

2.7 BASIC QUESTION FORMATION (YES/NO QUESTIONS)

Objective:
To learn how to form yes/no questions correctly using auxiliary verbs and proper word order in both the verb “to be” and other verbs in the present simple.

❓ WHAT ARE YES/NO QUESTIONS?

Yes/No questions are questions that can be answered with a simple “yes” or “no”.

Examples:
Do you like coffee? → Yes, I do. / No, I don’t.
Is she at home? → Yes, she is. / No, she isn’t.

They follow inverted word order: the auxiliary verb comes before the subject.

🔹 1. WITH THE VERB “TO BE”

Structure  To be + subject + complement

Example  Are you tired?
  Is he your brother?
  Am I late?

🔁 Short answers:
Yes, I am. / No, I’m not.
Yes, she is. / No, she isn’t.

🔹 2. WITH OTHER VERBS (PRESENT SIMPLE)

Use do/does as auxiliary verbs:

Structure  Do/Does + subject + base verb

Example  Do you speak English?
  Does he work here?

❗ Use “does” with he, she, it and remove the -s from the main verb.

🔁 Short answers:
Yes, I do. / No, I don’t.
Yes, he does. / No, he doesn’t.

🧠 QUICK REVIEW TABLE

Statement  Yes/No Question
You are a student.  Are you a student?
She is tired.  Is she tired?
You speak English.  Do you speak English?
He works here.  Does he work here?
They play tennis.  Do they play tennis?

🔁 NEGATIVE QUESTION VARIANTS

Yes/no questions can also be made negative, usually for confirmation or surprise.

Examples:
Aren’t you coming?
Doesn’t she like it?

❗ COMMON MISTAKES

Incorrect  Correct  Why?
You are student?  Are you a student?  Auxiliary before subject
She do work here?  Does she work here?  Wrong auxiliary + base verb
He does likes pizza?  Does he like pizza?  No -s in main verb after “does”
Is tired she?  Is she tired?  Incorrect word order

2.8 SUBJECT PRONOUNS AND OBJECT PRONOUNS

Objective:
To recognize and correctly use subject and object pronouns in English sentences, understanding their roles and avoiding common mistakes.

🔹 WHAT ARE PRONOUNS?

Pronouns are words that replace nouns to avoid repetition.

Instead of: Maria is a teacher. Maria lives in Madrid.
Say: Maria is a teacher. She lives in Madrid.

🧍 SUBJECT PRONOUNS

Subject pronouns act as the subject of a verb (who or what does the action).

Person  Subject Pronoun  Example
1st sg  I  I am ready.
2nd sg  You  You speak English.
3rd sg  He / She / It  He likes pizza.
1st pl  We  We are students.
2nd pl  You  You are friends.
3rd pl  They  They play football.

✅ It is used for:
Things: It is a car.
Animals (when gender is unknown): It’s a cat.
Weather/time: It’s raining.

🎯 OBJECT PRONOUNS

Object pronouns are used as the object of a verb or preposition (who/what receives the action).

Person  Object Pronoun  Example
1st sg  me  She called me.
2nd sg  you  I saw you.
3rd sg  him / her / it  We met him. / I love her.
1st pl  us  He helped us.
2nd pl  you  We invited you.
3rd pl  them  She knows them.

🔁 SUBJECT VS. OBJECT: QUICK COMPARISON

Sentence  Subject Pronoun  Object Pronoun
I see her every day.  I  her
She gave me a gift.  She  me
They called us last night.  They  us
Do you know him?  You  him

🧠 POSITION IN SENTENCE

Subject pronouns go before the verb: He works here.
Object pronouns go after the verb or after prepositions: I saw her, He spoke to me

❗ COMMON ERRORS BY SPANISH SPEAKERS

Incorrect  Correct  Why?
Me like pizza.  I like pizza.  “Me” is not a subject
She told I the truth.  She told me the truth.  “I” is subject, “me” is object
They invited we.  They invited us.  Use object form after the verb

⚠ In Spanish, me, te, lo, la, nos... don’t match English exactly → careful with translations.

2.9 UNIT 2 REVIEW

Objective:
To review the core grammar concepts from Unit 2 and test understanding through practical exercises focused on sentence structure, articles, noun types, and word classes.

📚 UNIT 2 SUMMARY

Let’s review what you’ve learned in this unit:

🧱 2.1 SENTENCE ELEMENTS

Every English sentence requires at least a subject and a verb.
Additional elements: object, complement, adverbial.

🔤 2.2 ARTICLES

• a / an = general (indefinite)
the = specific (definite)
No article with plural/uncountable nouns when general.

🔢 2.3 COUNTABLE AND UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS

Countable = books, apples, chairs
Uncountable = water, information, advice

🔁 2.4 SINGULAR AND PLURAL FORMS

Regular: +s / +es
Irregular: man → men, child → children
Some nouns stay the same: sheep, fish

✏️ 2.5 ADJECTIVES AND WORD ORDER

Adjectives come before the noun or after linking verbs.
Order: Opinion – Size – Age – Shape – Color – Origin – Material – Purpose.

✅ 2.6 AFFIRMATIVE/NEGATIVE SENTENCES

• Use “to be” + not or do/does + not + verb for negatives.

❓ 2.7 YES/NO QUESTIONS

Inversion: to be / do / does + subject + verb
Use correct auxiliaries and verb forms.

👤 2.8 SUBJECT/OBJECT PRONOUNS

Subject: I, you, he, she, it, we, they
Object: me, you, him, her, it, us, them