Essential Grammar Rules and Literary Techniques

Literal and Figurative Language

A word or group of words can have different literal or figurative meanings depending on the situation in which they are used. In the literal sense, a word retains its usual meaning. In the figurative sense, its meaning does not correspond to the usual definition.

Rules for Compound Words

Compound words are formed by two or more simple words. Hyphenated compound words retain the accent of the words that form them if they carry it as simple words. Unscripted compound words follow general rules of accentuation. Compound words consisting of a verb and one or more pronouns also follow general rules of accentuation.

Understanding Adjectives and Their Degrees

Adjectives are words expressing qualities or states of the nouns to which they relate. The adjective agrees in gender and number with the noun. There are three degrees of the adjective:

• Positive Grade: Expresses the quality without reference to its intensity.
• Comparative Grade: Expresses the quality of a person, animal, or object against that of another person, animal, or object. It may be of superiority, equality, or inferiority.
• Superlative Grade: Expresses a quality in its highest degree. It can be relative or absolute.

Elements of a Theatrical Text

In a theatrical text, the following elements are present:

• Characters: The individuals who are going to intervene in the play.
• Stage Directions: Comments that explain how the actor has to act or what should be on stage, including costumes.
• Acts and Scenes: Indicators of a change in stage or time.

Primitive and Derived Words

A primitive word is not derived from other words. Derived words are formed from another word by adding prefixes or suffixes.

Accentuation in Monosyllables

Generally, monosyllables do not have accents. Nevertheless, some monosyllables use accents to differentiate meanings:

• Tea (noun) vs. you (personal pronoun)
• He (pronoun) vs. the (definite article)
• I (pronoun) vs. my (possessive)
• You (personal pronoun) vs. your (possessive)
• Yes (affirmation) vs. if (conditional)
• Give (verb) vs. from (preposition)
• I (verb "to know" or "to be") vs. it (personal pronoun)

Types of Pronouns

Pronouns are words that substitute for a name or noun in sentences.

Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns name the speaker, listener, or the person spoken about without saying their name.

• Tonic personal pronouns: Can appear separated from the verb or alone.
• Unstressed personal pronouns: Always accompany a verb.

Demonstrative and Possessive Pronouns

• Demonstrative pronouns: Replace the noun and indicate the distance from the speaker.
• Possessive pronouns: Replace the noun and indicate possession or ownership.

Rhyme in Poetry

Two verses rhyme when their last words match all or some sounds from the vowel to the end of the word. The rhyme may be assonance or consonant.