Yesterday, my student was confused about when to use “alot” and “a lot”. I understand that many English users are also in the same boat. Sometimes, they are stuck between them in their write-ups. Today’s class provides an opportunity to understand that “a lot” is the recognized phrase in English. In contrast, “alot” is a non-existent word. I am confident to inform you that its use is substandard and wrong. Whoever uses it in English examinations will definitely be penalized. I want you to learn that “a lot” means “a large amount”.
Study the following sentences:
She heard a lot of things about her best friend.
I read a lot of books last night.
The common phrase can also be used as an adverb as indicated through the following sentences:
Thanks a lot for your assistance.
I read a lot.
LOTS OF
The above phrase is an alternative form of “a lot”. This means that you can decide to use “lots of” instead of “a lot”, especially for informal conversations.
Review the following sentences:
She makes lots of money in the United Kingdom.
Amarachi steals lots of pens from the woman’s bag.
The baby has lots of toys at home.
FACE CAP
Several English speakers use “ face cap” unapologetically. You are also likely to find this erroneous expression in books authored by brilliant writers; however, its popularity does not make it right. Would you say “face cap” while discussing with native speakers and study their facial expressions?
The recognized word is “fez”. The Oxford Dictionary defines it as “a felt hat in the shape of a truncated cone, having a flat top with a tassel attached.” Have you now learnt the correct word?
Should I add a comma before “while”?
This is one of the questions that bothered me before I found the right answer. Whenever “ while” means “during the same time that”, do not use a comma.
Examples:
She was singing while cooking.
The bereaved man was eating while crying.
The first sentence means that she sang at the same time she cooked, while the second sentence means that the bereaved man ate at the same time he cried.
However, whenever “while” serves as an introducing phrase, use a comma before the sentence that follows.
While cooking, he sang.
While I was eating, she brought a biscuit.
In addition, add a comma before “while” when it means “whereas” or “although”.
Examples:
The girl cooked, while her school cleaned their room.
The president arrived early, while his aide arrived late.
A TALKATIVE
After a thorough review, I could not confirm “talkative” as a noun. I am puzzled by the consistent use of the word as a noun by several speakers. On Facebook, someone commented, “The man is a talkative.” Do you know that the article “a” is ungrammatical because the word is an adjective, not a noun?
Study the following sentences:
Tunde is a talkative. (Wrong)
Tunde is talkative. (Correct)
Frankly speaking, the lecturer is a talkative. (Wrong)
Frankly speaking, the lecturer is talkative. (Correct)
Avoid the article “a” like the plague. Do not use it unless it will be used to describe the person (as an adjective).
Examples:
Tunde is a talkative boy. (Correct)
Frankly speaking, the lecturer is a talkative man. (Correct)
The man married a talkative wife. (Correct)
Have you now studied how to use “a” with “talkative” correctly?
SLANGS
She used a lot of slangs in her speech. (Wrong)
She used a lot of slang words in her speech. (Correct)
She used a lot of slang expressions in her speech. (Correct)
The word “slang” should not have “s” inflection. Do not join the group of speakers who say “slangs”. If you have more than one items of slang, use “slang words” or “slang expressions” as stated in the examples.
LOVE YOU TOO
A girlfriend said to her partner, “Love you too”. Let’s analyze the statement:
Love you too!
What is wrong with the above sentence?
The grammatical issue is called a sentence fragment. This occurs when the subject or the main verb in a sentence is missing. It could also mean an incomplete sentence looking like a sentence. Here, the subject “I” is missing. She should have said “I love you, too”, not “Love you too”.
Last night, I read heartbreaking news about the death of an elder. A sympathizer wrote, “am short of words…”. My attention was drawn to the expression because her condolence was riddled with a sentence fragment. He should have said, “I am short of words…”. “ I” should not be ignored because it is compulsory.
Other examples of sentence fragments are below:
Is my friend. (Wrong)
He is my friend. (Correct)
When I come back home. (Wrong)
I will complete the tasks when I come back home. (Correct)
After her father left. (Wrong)
She came back home after her father left. (Correct)
Is well. (Wrong)
It is well. (Correct)
Choose the correct answer to each of the following sentences:
Assignment
1. She talks ________. (a) a lot (b) alot (c) plentiful
2. Stop using ______ in my class. (a) slang words (b) slangs (c) some slangs
3. The lady is _______. (a) talkative (b) a talkative (c) some talkatives
Kindly forward your answers to [email protected]; 07049203179.
Names of those who answered the last questions correctly
Pitan Rasheed, Olive Alimi, Jerry Solomon, Adaeze Beauty, Bello Sulaimon, Bala Aminat, Racheal Praise, Eze Jeremiah, Shukurat Adekola, Bolanle Olusola and Caroline Praise.
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