This is unusual because in standard word order the subject comes before the verb.. Approximately one item on the TOEFL will test your ability to recognize a situation where the word orde
Trang 1213 Recognizing Inverted Subjects and Verbs
Q Focus
Read the following sentences:
At the North Pole is a massive sheet of permanent ice
In the Amazon Basin live more than two million species of insects
Never had the submarine been used so effectively until the First World War
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What is similar about the subject-verb structures in the sentences?
In all of these sentences, the verb comes before the subject This is unusual because in standard word
order the subject comes before the verb
Notice that the first two sentences begin with a prepositional phrase: At the North Pole, In the
Amazon Basin Both of these phrases refer to a location
In the third sentence, notice that the sentence begins with a negative word, Never The fourth
sentence begins with the phrase Hardly ever Why is the order of the subject and verb inverted in
these sentences? You can probably guess that the word order changes when a sentence begins with
certain expressions
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213 INVERTED SUBJECTS AND VERBS
2 DO YOU KNOW ?
1 Approximately one item on the TOEFL will test your ability to recognize a situation where the
word order of the subject and verb is inverted
2 The standard word order of a sentence is: subject + verb (+ object) Use standard word order in
main clauses and in subordinate clauses that begin with question words:
When the bear hibernates, its temperature drops
Invert the subject and verb in direct questions:
When does the bear hibernate?
Inverted subject-verb word order is sometimes called question word order
Invert the subject and verb in the following situations:
ome after prepositional phrases of location
“ws after certain negative expressions
ns after the special expressions so and neither
Note: When inverting a subject and verb with one or more auxiliaries, the subject comes after
the first auxiliary:
Never had the submarine been used so effectively until the First World War
3 When a statement begins with a prepositional phrase of location, the subject and verb are
inverted (You will review prepositional phrases in 2.21.)
Along the Mississippi are forty-one dams to regulate the flow of the river
When there is the subject, use standard word order:
Along the Mississippi, there are forty-one dams to regulate the flow of the river
There are forty-one dams along the Mississippi to regulate the flow of the river
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Note: In some sentences, an introductory prepositional phrase expresses position in a group
instead of physical location:
Among the best-loved fairy tales are Cinderella and Snow White
A test item may try to trick you by using standard word order where inverted word order is
needed Look at this example:
Among central Asia’s oldest cities Tashkent is, the economic heart of Uzbekistan and leading manufacturer of textiles and machinery
Trang 3
Which underlined word or phrase must be changed for the sentence to be correct? If you chose
Tashkent is, you were correct because the order of the subject and verb should be inverted The
prepositional phrase Among central Asia’ oldest cities expresses Tashkent’s position in a group
of cities Correction: is Tashkent
Also, in the above sentence, notice the appositive (See 2.2) following the comma: the economic
heart of Uzbekistan and leading manufacturer of textiles and machinery The appositive is a clue
that a noun, not a verb, must be placed before it
When a sentence or main clause begins with certain negative or “almost negative” expressions,
the subject and verb are inverted
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Not until the 1840s could women own property in the United States
Note: When the negative expression comes at the beginning of a subordinate clause, invert the
subject and verb in the main clause, not the subordinate clause:
Only when you see no oncoming traffic should you make a left turn
Look at this TOEFL item:
Rarely - the company of others of its species
C>) seeks the adult jaguar
C_) does the adult jaguar seek
C_) the adult jaguar seeks
For the missing part of the sentence, standard word order would be the adult jaguar seeks
However, Rarely is an “almost negative” word, which means that you should invert the subject
and verb (use question word order) Both the first and second answer choices have inverted
subject-verb order, but which best completes the sentence?
In question word order, if there is no auxiliary, you must add the correct form of do as the first
part of the verb In the above example this is: does the adult jaguar seek Therefore, the second
choice best completes the sentence
With the special expressions so and neither, the subject and verb are inverted to avoid
unnecessary repetition
The gull is a cliff-dweller, and the common murre is a cliff-dweller
The gull is a cliff-dweller, and so is the common murre
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213 INVERTED SUBJECTS AND VERBS
A test item may try to trick you by having so or neither in only some of the answer choices Look
at this example:
In the early 1990s, the endangered peregrine falcon was not often seen, and -
neither the upland sandpiper neither was the upland sandpiper the upland sandpiper neither was seen does not the upland sandpiper
QQ000
All of the-answer choices contain a negative expression The first choice lacks a verb The
second and third choices have neither, but only the second choice has an inverted subject
and verb: neither was the upland sandpiper The fourth choice has an incorrect auxiliary
The second choice best completes the sentence, which should read: Jn the early 1990s, the
endangered peregrine falcon was not often seen, and neither was the upland sandpiper
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Ve PRACTICE
Exercise 2.13.A
Choose the one word or phrase that best completes the sentence
236
1, Not only - the fall of the czar, it also
destroyed the short-lived Provisional
Government of Aleksandr Kerenski
CA) did World War I bring about
World War I brought about
Ce) it was brought about by World War I
CD bring World War I about
On the Galapagos Islands - the forty
thousand breeding pairs of the blue—footed booby
CA) half live
the half live
Ce) live half of
Cp) half are living
The coyote prefers to hunt at night, and so - -
CA the leopard also
the leopard does hunt
Ce) is the leopard
Cp) does the leopard
4 Under no circumstances -~ - without looking carefully to the rear
CA) should one back up a motor vehicle should a motor vehicle one back up Ce) one should back up a motor vehicle
(@) a motor vehicle should back up
5 Among Italo Calvino’s works - about World War II, The Path to the Nest of Spiders
CA) arealistic novel
it is a realistic novel Ce) a realistic novel is () is a realistic novel
6 In the very center of the flower -
CA) one or more pistils are
CB) or one more pisti!
Ce) is one or more pistils
CB one or more is a pistil
De.ta’s Key To THE TOEFL® Test
Trang 57 Nowhere in the United States - grizzly 8 The sea fig’s scientific name means “blooming
bear attacks than in Glacier National Park at midday,” and seldom - unless it receives
fall sun
CA) are there more
Choose the one underlined word or phrase that must be changed for the sentence to be correct
pay
9 In the Cascade Range the mountain bluebird lives, which is sometimes seen in snags and open areas a
10 Only after the Civil War had started Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which put an end =
to slavery in the South
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Answers to Exercise 2.13.A are on page 644
2.13 EXTENSION
ren BE TT SE A
1 In reading done outside class, students look for sentences with inverted subject-verb
order Bring examples to share in class Discuss why the subject and verb are inverted
2 Students create “TOEFL sentences” to test their classmates’ understanding of inverted
subject—verb order Students write sentences that begin with a prepositional phrase of location Use the list of prepositions on page 234 Omit the subject and verb, and leave
a blank space where they should be Classmates must provide an appropriate subject and verb in the correct order
3 Students create “TOEFL sentences” that begin with a negative expression from the list
on page 235 Omit the subject and verb, and leave a blank space where they should be
Write the subject and verb (+ auxiliaries) below the sentence, but mix up the order
Classmates must provide the subject and verb in the correct order
Trang 6
Quiz 6
ASSESSING PROGRESS — 2.11 through 2.13
Quiz 6 (Time — 10 minutes)
Choose the one word or phrase that best completes the sentence
1 The tasks of preparing project budgets and 3 opportunities for irrigation are few
marketing plans can have disastrous effects in New Mexico, most farmland is used for
on the program - the grazing of cattle and sheep
2 Not often - fatal today, but immediate 4 a living plant, animal, or bacterial cell,
medical attention is essential they make use of the host cell’s chemical energy
(@) is a rattlesnake bite @) When viruses enter
Choose the one underlined word or phrase that must be changed for the sentence to be correct
5 Many of the early American settlers thought that unless they do their jobs well and believed in
God, they would not be rewarded
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6 Between mountains and desert Damascus lies, which is the largest city in Syria and perhaps the
oldest continuously occupied city in the world
D
Choose the one word or phrase that best completes the sentence
7 Until recently, Cleveland has had no 8 Buckminster Fuller, the maverick engineer
viable tourism industry, and - and social planner, criticized the wasteful
procedures that were usually followed - CA) Toledo has not had
Ce) neither Toledo has had one when building a house
build a house
Trang 79 If you - something cold, the molecules 11 Botulism causes disturbances in swallowing
in your fingers slow down as they lose heat and paralysis of respiratory muscles, -
10, - in tree cavities, but the mated pair
often perches in trees, especially when
searching for a nesting site
CA) If the wood duck nests
Because the wood duck nests
How does the wood duck nest
Cb) Not only does the wood duck nest
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Choose the one underlined word or phrase that must be changed for the sentence to be correct
12 If the front teeth of a rodent were not continue growing, they would be worn away
13 Physicians now believe that even if a person is genetically predisposed to a certain disease,
although changes in lifestyle can alter the course of his or her health
Choose the one word or phrase that best completes the sentence
14 West of the Appalachian Mountains - 15 In 1988 an earthquake struck northern Armenia,
and rolling plains of the Pennyroyal, the ———— over fifty thousand people
famous Bluegrass region of Kentucky
killing
@) of the rocky hills
Answers to Structure Quiz 6 are on page 645
Trang 8
2.14- SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT
2.14 Checking Subject-Verb Agreement
Q Focus
What is wrong with this sentence?
The slender bristles of “cotton” on the stems of cotton grass is actually the tiny petals of the plant’s flowers
In this sentence, the subject and verb are not in agreement Agreement is a correct match between two
parts of a sentence In this example, the verb does not fit, or agree with, the subject
The subject of the sentence, The slender bristles, is plural It needs a plural verb; therefore, the verb
is must be changed to are The sentence should read: The slender bristles of “cotton” on the stems
of cotton grass are actually the tiny petals of the plant’ flowers
What is wrong with this sentence?
Haze from pollen and forest fires have always been present in the Grand Canyon, but the recent increase comes from outside the national park
The subject of this sentence, Haze, is an uncountable noun (See 2.3) Uncountable nouns take singular
verbs The plural verb in this sentence, have always been must be changed to the singular has always
been
Beware! Sometimes a TOEFL sentence will try to trick you by separating the subject and verb with a
modifying phrase or clause Finding the subject and verb is sometimes tricky, but you have to be able
to find them in order to check their agreement
Trang 9ụ DO YOU KNOW ?
Approximately two items on the TOEFL will test your ability to check the agreement of subjects
and verbs You must be able to recognize errors in subject-verb agreement in main and subordi-
nate clauses
2 Subjects and verbs must agree in number A singular subject takes a singular verb A plural sub-
Singular Subject and Verb:
An amplifier increases the voltage of a weak signal from a microphone
Plural Subject and Verb:
Sensors detect the presence of something and often are used to measure it
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“~« the subject is third person singular
and
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An element contains only one kind of atom
When one catches a cold, resting and drinking fluids are the best cure
Note: Use has with third person singular subjects in the present perfect tense:
Washington has been the site of political demonstrations for two centuries
The verb be has its own special singular forms (am, is, was) and plural forms (are, were) Use
these forms when be is the main verb and when be is auxiliary to another verb
Singular Subject + Be:
The polar bear is one of the largest carnivores in the world
In the last four years of his life, Mozart was writing his best operas
Plural Subject + Be:
Floods are caused by excessive rain and poor drainage
Laurel and Hardy were famous comedians of films made in the 1920s
3 Phrases and clauses that come between the subject and verb do not change the number of the
subject These phrases and clauses modify the subject noun, and are therefore part of the subject,
but they do not affect the verb You must look at the subject noun and the main verb when you
check subject-verb agreement
DELTA'2 Key To THE TOEFL® Test 241
Trang 102.14 SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT
In the following sentences, circle the subjects and verbs Underline phrases and clauses that
separate the subjects and verbs
a All devices and machines powered by electricity contain an electric circuit
b Invasion of the lungs by plague bacteria causes a fatal form of the disease
c A substance that kills plants or inhibits their growth is called a “herbicide.”
(Answers: a subject: All devices and machines; verb: contain; adjective phrase: powered by
electricity; b subject: Invasion; verb: causes; prepositional phrases: of the lungs, by plague bacte-
ria; c subject: A substance; verb: is called; adjective clause: that kills plants or inhibits their
growth)
4, Singular verbs are used with singular nouns, uncountable nouns, and certain other nouns and pro-
nouns Use a singular verb with the following subjects:
Uncountable Noun:
Research has shown that men speak more than women in meetings
Gerund:
Preparing a budget translates planned activities into monetary terms
Noun Clause:
How animals interact with each other interests their trainers
“False” Subject It:
It is the hormones produced in the pancreas that regulate blood—sugar levels
Some pronouns take singular verbs, even though they may seem to have plural meanings:
can ee OVELyOne
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Each of the climate zones has its own patterns of weather
Everything alive on earth is composed of cells
Expressions of groups of people, animals, or things take singular verbs, even though the nouns
with them are plural:
‡EEzCkstcttttythiit2zitiriittrortg xreriteetrtrrrrritrrrdrtretditittitrttreiteotrietttrdirtirrkctrrtritrrrtEpiiEicrs
0É ecolonyol aEmUUyOE a flock of a pair of
Se Ss FOF Bere ee eee er emi ee ee ae
Apair of electrodes conducts the current in a battery
Some nouns appear plural but really are singular and take singular verbs:
SSIEEDTITEGERHEESHSEEESHDRIESSSOTDEGESEEHETESEERfESTHTEift4BisNHroSGiiSigigTTSsfEStSHrSasg
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Physics, one of the natural sciences, deals with energy and matter