Today's grammar lesson

[mapuc]

I try to practice my English spelling and the grammar

I use to read what Analytical Grammar post on their wall on FB

todays lesson


Lunchbox Lesson: DANGLING PARTICIPLES
A participle is a form of a verb. English has two types of participles: present participles and past participles. Present ...participles are easy to identify: they end in –ing.
"Speed" is a verb, and "speeding" is its present participle. To use "speeding" as an adjective-like participle, you could say "Follow that speeding car."
Phrases that contain a participle and modify the subject of the sentence are called "participial phrases." ex: "Looking around, I was the only one driving an American car."
"Looking around" is the participial phrase. The present participle (‘looking’) refers to the subject of the main clause (the pronoun ‘I’) – ‘I’ is the speaker or writer and the person who is both looking around and driving an American car, so everything matches up.
The participial phrase doesn't have to be at the beginning of a sentence, but that is the place where it's most likely to dangle.
When you dangle a participle, it means your participial phrase is hanging there in your sentence with no proper subject in sight.
ex: "Hiking the trail, the birds chirped loudly."
The birds are the only subject in the sentence, and they directly follow the participial phrase. The participial phrase has to grab on to something, so it grabs the only subject—the birds. So what that sentence says is that the birds were hiking the trail, and that's probably not what was meant. There's probably somebody hiking the trail and hearing the birds chirping loudly.
We can fix it by adding the proper subject right after the participial phrase: "Hiking the trail, the boys heard birds chirping loudly."
Another example: "Wishing I could sing, the high notes seemed to taunt me."
Did you see the problem? The high notes are the only subject in the sentence, so the participial phrase "wishing I could sing" attaches to that noun because it doesn't want to dangle. That makes a sentence that says the high notes wish I could sing, but what I'm really trying to say in that sentence is, "Wishing I could sing, I feel taunted by the high notes."
So to sum up, a dangling participle modifies the wrong noun. You fix a dangling participle by putting the proper subject in the sentence, usually right after the participle or participial phrase.

Now I only have to understand what all this mean

Markus

[Eichhörnchen]

When my participles are dangling I just pull on my trousers.

[Osmium Steele]

Excuse me sire, but your participle is dangling.:D

[Jimbuna]

http://i.imgur.com/LvsGYTm.jpg

[fireftr18]

After trying to read that, I think my participles are dangling. :doh:

[Sailor Steve]

In defense of Mapuc, he's trying to better understand English.

As for the article, I learned an aspect of grammar I had not understood before. I like that. :sunny:

[Catfish]

I think the hiking birds chirped loudly. After all, a lot of them are 'Zugvoegel', or migrant birds. :O:

[Eichhörnchen]

I see how this explains, technically, something which I would normally recognise as an English speaker and (as such) would seek to correct without even really thinking about it.

I always got hung up on this technical stuff at school; I only really learned about nouns, proper nouns, adjectives, verbs etc in more recent times, but I do understand why they are important for scholars of language and to help those comparing and learning other languages.

What really ticks me off is when journalists get things like this wrong; there's no excuse for them, and I usually reflect audibly and sarcastically that: "Their trade is words." There's no shame in us ordinary folks getting such nuances wrong but I'm sure I earn a hell of of a lot less than some of these so-called journalists who persist with such errors as "There's lots" or "A large amount of people".

Edit: I just found your post, Catfish. You make a good point!

[Wolferz]

Learning English from a Dane.:up:

A participle just sped past me. Or was that Eich in his nut car?:haha:

[Commander Wallace]

I try to practice my English spelling and the grammar

I use to read what Analytical Grammar post on their wall on FB

todays lesson



Now I only have to understand what all this mean

Markus



Don't Pay attention to these heathens, Markus. You speaks gooder English than me or Eichhörnchen. :D

That is a pretty good English lesson you quoted by the way. :sunny:

[mapuc]

Every time I post a comment or start a thread I think a lot of how words should be written and how in a sentence

Like taking command(something that is going to happen) or toke command(something that has happened)

Now and then I use google translate, but even this is sometimes not correctly

Let me give you an example why

In my thread about this German Submarine from WWI, in the Danish article in was written "den ene motor gik ud" In English one of the engine went out- this is what google translate translated it to

"one of the engine went out" I was thinking a lot-this doesn't sound right

In another thread I made a grammar mistake I wrote Countries politicians which are, as I was told, not correct, the correct sentence are Country's politicians

Markus

[Commander Wallace]

Every time I post a comment or start a thread I think a lot of how words should be written and how in a sentence

Like taking command(something that is going to happen) or toke command(something that has happened)

Now and then I use google translate, but even this is sometimes not correctly

Let me give you an example why

In my thread about this German Submarine from WWI, in the Danish article in was written "den ene motor gik ud" In English one of the engine went out- this is what google translate translated it to

"one of the engine went out" I was thinking a lot-this doesn't sound right

In another thread I made a grammar mistake I wrote Countries politicians which are, as I was told, not correct, the correct sentence are Country's politicians

Markus

We hardly stand on ceremony here Markus. Most of us here are not really concerned of grammer mistakes considering Subsim members are from all over the world. If we can get the " Jist " or meaning of what a member is a saying, that's good enough. :) You may well know more that native speakers of English right now. Besides, we never had an issue understanding your many posts and threads.

[Wolferz]

Conjunction junction.:O:
What's that function?

[Commander Wallace]

Conjunction junction.:O:
What's that function?

Well, going to keep us in suspense ? :D

[August]

Now I only have to understand what all this mean

Markus

It basically says how to avoid talking like Yoda. :yep:

[August]

"one of the engine went out" I was thinking a lot-this doesn't sound right

No but it's close. All it needs is to add an S to the end of engine.

"one of the engines went out"

[fireftr18]

Well, going to keep us in suspense ? :D
https://video.search.yahoo.com/search/video?fr=mcafee&p=school+house+rock+conjuction+junction#id=1&vid=1e64167e0ea745fb9df44ae280722e93&action=click

[fireftr18]

What really ticks me off is when journalists get things like this wrong; there's no excuse for them, and I usually reflect audibly and sarcastically that: "Their trade is words." There's no shame in us ordinary folks getting such nuances wrong but I'm sure I earn a hell of of a lot less than some of these so-called journalists who persist with such errors as "There's lots" or "A large amount of people".

Edit: I just found your post, Catfish. You make a good point!

It's not how much they get paid, but that it's their job. People expected me to be proficient in fire suppression because I got paid to do it. It's the same thing, just a different skill set. :know:

[Catfish]

It basically says how to avoid talking like Yoda. :yep:
"Are we on course?"
"Off course, we are."

Then it's all good :D

[Eichhörnchen]

Perhaps a thread for Yodaspeak we should have?

[Jimbuna]

Perhaps a thread for Yodaspeak we should have?

Beginning to tempt my patience, you are.

[Commander Wallace]

https://video.search.yahoo.com/search/video?fr=mcafee&p=school+house+rock+conjuction+junction#id=1&vid=1e64167e0ea745fb9df44ae280722e93&action=click

Thanks Fireftr. :up:

[Wolferz]

If stupid you are breed you should not.
:O:

[Aktungbby]

If stupid you are breed you should not.
:O:

Avoid the conjunction junction u should! Lest your dangling participle prove less than upright...err U B a lil' light in the saber dept!:O:

[Commander Wallace]

Avoid the conjunction junction u should! Lest your dangling participle prove less than upright...err U B a lil' light in the saber dept!:O:


:haha:

[Wolferz]

Avoid the conjunction junction u should! Lest your dangling participle prove less than upright...err U B a lil' light in the saber dept!:O:



Go and or your but.:shucks:

[mapuc]

There is an area in which you don't have to follow the laws of grammar and spellings. One of our subsim friend do sometimes work in that area

Can you guess what it is ?

Markus

[Jimbuna]

One? I can think of at least two :hmm2:

[mapuc]

One? I can think of at least two :hmm2:

I know only of this one

It in the world of music and poetry-A song write or a poet doesn't have to follow the rules of grammar or spelling.

Ok that makes it two somehow.

Markus

[Aktungbby]

^ Only if the music is played on a washboard, with spoons, and at least a one string banjo... only then may the convenshun's of proper grammar be sublimate'd in the interest of 'poetic license' :smug: Usually as a form of Ozark Stomp...Armistead's raison d'être actually! He stays in shape cloggin' to this stuff whar Inglish Grammah is a second tongue! (note proper use of apostrophe's) :woot: https://cbsradionews.files.wordpress.com/2014/08/benmillerband-cropped.jpg?w=640&h=360&crop=1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGaq5d7LAyw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGaq5d7LAyw) & https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWRTZfsGYaA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWRTZfsGYaA)

[Wolferz]

Alas poor Yorick. We knew you well.
Until the catastrophic weight loss.

[mapuc]

You could be true and I could have remembered wrong. ´Cause I toke it from my memory-long time ago, where I followed a series about
Rock 'n' Roll

Markus

[Jimbuna]

I know only of this one

It in the world of music and poetry-A song write or a poet doesn't have to follow the rules of grammar or spelling.

Ok that makes it two somehow.

Markus

Best if I don't go into more detail :know:

[Sailor Steve]

It in the world of music and poetry-A song write or a poet doesn't have to follow the rules of grammar or spelling.
It's called "Artistic License". Novelists often intentionally use bad grammar when having one of their characters say something, the point being to make the words read the way the person talks. I just did the same thing in the Funny Picture thread, using "ain't" a couple of times.

It works when the writer knows how to use it correctly. The problem comes when people who should know better consistently mangle the language. Even that doesn't seem to be a problem when everybody on a forum does it, because apparently none of them know better.

[vienna]

You could be true and I could have remembered wrong. ´Cause I toke it from my memory-long time ago, where I followed a series about
Rock 'n' Roll

Markus

If you "toke", the potential memory loss is understandable...




<O>

[Aktungbby]

Whatever yer a tokin'::arrgh!: https://media.giphy.com/media/C8o6jVdZVcI8g/giphy.gifhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvGJvzwKqg0 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvGJvzwKqg0)

[mapuc]

Best if I don't go into more detail :know:


I know I'm not very good when it comes to English Grammar and exact spelling.

Markus

[Eichhörnchen]

Your English is far better than my Danish; as CW says, we always understand you perfectly well :up:

[Jimbuna]

I know I'm not very good when it comes to English Grammar and exact spelling.

Markus

Sorry Markus but I think you missed the point I was making and it certainly isn't your fault matey :sunny:

[August]

Beginning to tempt my patience, you are.

Participles, how many could we dangle?

[mapuc]

I'm going to derail my thread a little it's still about English but this time speaking the language (unnecessary to start a new thread about almost the same topic)

Yesterday I watched a program where an Englishman was travelling around in India and interviewed people from different places in India.

I noticed that they(the native) spoke English with the same "melody" as when they spoke Indian

I hear that in many cases, where a native talk a foreign language with the same "melody" as in his native language.

I'm not talking about accent, in which you can hear where a person is coming from

Markus

[Jimbuna]

A great many call centres have closed in the UK and opened again in countries like India.

The companies buy or build a school/college in a village or town and tech the people how to understand and speak in different British dialects.

The reason for the above is simply to save money on staffing costs and EU working conditions.

I personally don't agree with it because of the unemployment it creates in my country but no doubt the areas abroad in which much needed employment is created will have no problems with the practice.

Also, the UK is one of many countries where said practice is carried out.

[Dowly]

@mapuc: English language books are a great way to learn how english works without you even noticing it.

Same can be said about text heavy games (point&clicks for example) and watching movies (even english) with english subtitles on.

[mapuc]

@mapuc: English language books are a great way to learn how english works without you even noticing it.

Same can be said about text heavy games (point&clicks for example) and watching movies (even english) with english subtitles on.

Thank you for your advice.

I do sometimes watch one of my DVD with English subtitles on.

I'm saving money to buy some books about the American civil war-There seems to be very little historical books about this topic in Swedish and Danish

Markus

[vienna]

I'm going to derail my thread a little it's still about English but this time speaking the language (unnecessary to start a new thread about almost the same topic)

Yesterday I watched a program where an Englishman was travelling around in India and interviewed people from different places in India.

I noticed that they(the native) spoke English with the same "melody" as when they spoke Indian

I hear that in many cases, where a native talk a foreign language with the same "melody" as in his native language.

I'm not talking about accent, in which you can hear where a person is coming from

Markus

The "melody", as you put it, can be a valuable tool in learning a language. A long time ago, I knew someone who was very adept at languages; she also happened to be an actress and singer. I asked her how she was ale to learn languages with such ease. She told me, aside from learning the mechanics of a language (grammar, spelling, usage, etc.), she approached languages as an exercise in acting and singing. She would assume the "character" of the native speaker, sort of putting herself in their shoes, adopting and adapting their mannerisms and style (e.g., Italian: lots of hand movement and facial movement); she also treated the sound of a language as a sort of song: tone, rhythm, emphasis, and, as you put it, melody. She said it was sort of analogous to my learning riffs, runs and phrases on guitar. I once ventured to learn Japanese, mainly because my second ex was studying the language in university and would sometime say something to me in Japanese and I wanted to know whether or not to be insulted or delighted. I studied on my own and approached in the way my long ago friend had advised. The end result was I achieved an accent proficiency that, much to my ex's annoyance and my surprise, got compliments from some of the native speakers she knew; they said I had a very near perfect Tokyo accent and a reasonable Osaka accent. So, maybe you should run with the idea of language as a melody; it might help...




<O>

[Eichhörnchen]

You put it very well. My German teacher once complimented me on my speaking of the language, whereas another classmate I do recall had an unfortunate 'knack' of delivering his spoken German with a "Brummie" (Birmingham) twang. He'd never been near Birmingham...

[Platapus]

I hear that in many cases, where a native talk a foreign language with the same "melody" as in his native language.


Markus


What you may be referring to is Isochrony or the rhythmic divisions in language. This is separate from the Tempo of Speech.

Different languages have different Isochronic patterns. When one learns one language but applies another languages Isochronic pattern, it does sound strange.

Some languages, perhaps some of the languages of India, have a more patent pattern than other languages.

It would be interesting to find out if native English (US or UK) speakers have such a pattern.

About a hundred years ago when I took the Defense Language Aptitude Battery (DLAB), part of the simulated languages used in the battery used different Isochronic patterns.

[mapuc]

What you may be referring to is Isochrony or the rhythmic divisions in language. This is separate from the Tempo of Speech.

Different languages have different Isochronic patterns. When one learns one language but applies another languages Isochronic pattern, it does sound strange.

Some languages, perhaps some of the languages of India, have a more patent pattern than other languages.

It would be interesting to find out if native English (US or UK) speakers have such a pattern.

About a hundred years ago when I took the Defense Language Aptitude Battery (DLAB), part of the simulated languages used in the battery used different Isochronic patterns.

Thank you :salute:

I was searching the Internet for the correct technical words.

So I used the word "Melody" instead.

Markus