Essentials of English Grammar: A Practical Guide to the Mastery of English [Paperback]

L. Sue Baugh (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0844258210 | ISBN-13: 978-0844258218 | Publication Date: January 11, 1994 | Edition: 2

In clear, concise terms, with lively examples, this convenient reference provides general usage rules for parts of speech, punctuation, capitalization, abbreviations, numbers, word division, spelling, and commonly confused words. This handy, easy-to-use guide provides essentials that are useful for people with the occasional question as well as those who are learning the basics. Style guidelines are included, with recommendations for achieving brevity, clarity and accuracy.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Perplexed by prepositions? Stymied by semicolons? Solve the puzzle of good grammar.

A quick reference for people with grammar questions and an excellent primer for anyone learning the basics, Essentials of English Grammar features a glossary of grammar terms and updated coverage of stylistic conventions.

Easy-to-follow examples guide you through the rules for parts of speech, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, frequently confused words, and much more. Also included are important style tips on how to write with economy, clarity, and accuracy.

An indispensable, easy-to-use reference to the English language, Essentials of English Grammar includes information on:

Grammar Essentials

• Parts of speech and their functions
• Pronoun-antecedent agreement
• Common errors in using verb tenses
• Correct use of punctuation and punctuation style
• Sentence constructions
• Errors to avoid with prepositions
• Spelling and word division
• Correct use of capitalization, abbreviations, and numbers

Style Considerations

• Effective sentence patterns
• Brevity in writing
• Using words that are specific and concrete for clarity
• Achieving accuracy
• Salutations and titles
• Gender-inclusive language

Appendixes

• Principal parts of irregular verbs
• Verb-preposition combinations
• Frequently confused words
• Frequently misspelled words

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

L. Sue Baugh is the bestselling author of numerous books on grammar usage and writing.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 146 pages
• Publisher: Passport Books; 2 edition (January 11, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0844258210
• ISBN-13: 978-0844258218
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,671,553 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars cool little grammer book, March 31, 2005

By 

Libri Mundi "Libri Mundi" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Essentials of English Grammar: A Practical Guide to the Mastery of English (Paperback)

I love this book. This is a thin book so easy to carry and has almost everything that you need in your day to day work. The book is extremely handy and essential if you are writing essays or even letters. English is not my first language so sometimes I use it. To be honest everyday. I like the book. The other good thing is that it is succint and do not take you through 50 pages of example. Very practical book> But this is not for the ones who are majoring in Enlgish language and wants to write a thesis on literature. So please judge your purpose and then buy it

44 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Refernce but Flawed, July 20, 2000

By 

Brian D. Warner - See all my reviews

This review is from: Essentials of English Grammar: A Practical Guide to the Mastery of English (Paperback)

Overall I recommend the book but it does contain several glaring problems.

The first is trying to be politically correct by substituting "his or her" for "his." English is based in large part on the Romance languages, which are quite comforatble with applying gender to nouns. In English, the "generic noun" is masculine and so "his" should be used, not "his or hers." I do not propose that language should not evolve but not all advancements are necessarily progress.

The second is that in many examples, "I think" is substituted for "I believe". "To think" is to go through the process of reasoning. "To believe" is to have a specific conviction. If the context is that of dissenting with another's opinion, one does not think that someone is wrong, he believes that person is wrong.

Last is the incorret use of qualifiers. It is not "Chicago has a population of over 7.5 million;" it is "Chicago has a population of more than 7.5 million." "Over" is used to define a spatial location, as are "below", "beside", etc. "More" is used to define the relative status of one quantity versus another.

Again, this is a good reference but be aware it is does have problems of which you should be aware.

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Good Resource for Beginning Writers, April 13, 2005

By 

T. Hooper "thdizzy" (Osaka, Japan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Essentials of English Grammar: A Practical Guide to the Mastery of English (Paperback)

"Essentials of English Grammar" is a nice introduction to grammar for beginning writers. It begins by going over the basics of grammar and then eventually builds up to more complex constructions. Towards the end of the book, there is a short section on style. This gives beginning writers some tips on how to make their writing a little more professional. Finally, there is a useful section on words that are easily mistaken for each other. I found that section to be very useful even for advanced students. Basically this is a book for beginning writers. It would be a good reference for high schools students, college freshmen who haven't had much experience in writing, and students who are studying English as a second or foreign language. If you have lots of writing experience, you won't find anything new here. Give it as a gift to a high school student and their writing skills will improve if they read it.