GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE:PARTS OF SPEECH

NOUNS

• COMMON NOUNS
• They are simply words that name people, places, things, or ideas.
• They are not the actual names.
• The word ‘teacher’ is a common noun, but the word ‘Halima’ is not.
• A common noun identifies a thing, etc.
• Example of common nouns are:
• People: teacher, father, secretary, woman, girl, etc
• Animals: Tiger, Dog, Cow, etc
• Things: Chair, desk, cup, phone, etc
• Places: City, town, continent, etc
• Ideas: envy, hate, love, pride, etc

How to Capitalize Common Nouns

The simple rule is: don’t capitalize a common noun, unless it is the first word in a sentence, or part of a title.

Examples in Sentences

• Let’s go to that hotel.
• I visit a town during the holidays.

Exercise

Substitute the underlined word(s) with a common noun. You can add a word before the noun.

1. John and Nick were taught.
2. I have visited Asia.
3. She lives in Nairobi.
4. We eat at the Hilton.
5. Have you ever swum in the Nile?
6. I drive Mercedes Benz.
7. Everyone went shopping at Tuskys.
8. Corporal Jones has died.
9. I come from Rwanda.
10. I am teach at Alliance.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

PROPER NOUNS

• A proper noun is a name used for an individual person, thing, or a place.
• They always begin in capital letters no matter where they occur in sentences.
• Look at the table below.

Common Noun	Proper Noun	Example in a Sentence
Teacher President   City	Mr. Kamau Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta   Mombasa	Mr. Kamau is our teacher of English. Mr Uhuru Kenyatta is in the state house. Mombasa is the place I go every weekend.

Exercise

Identify proper nouns in the sentences below.

1. I will take you to Rich’s Palace.
2. Sarah is the girl I told you about.
3. Of all the continents, I like Africa the most.
4. Gracy is the cutest kitten ever.
5. I am craving Oreos.
6. I used Tilly in cooking.
7. Jupiter is one of the planets.
8. Margaret was a great author.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

CONCRETE AND ABSTRACT NOUNS

Concrete Nouns

• A concrete noun register to our senses.
• You can see, hear, taste, smell, or even feel them.
• The examples are:
• Table
• Ball
• House
• Rice
• Water
• Wool

 Abstract Nouns

• They don’t register to one’s senses.
• They are just ideas, feelings, or qualities.
• Some examples of abstract nouns include:
• Health
• Interest
• Sleep
• Traffic
• Advice
• Education
• Business
• Insurance
• Happiness
• Peace
• Knowledge
• History
• Noise
• Intelligence
• Anger
• Fun
• Pride
• Confidence
• Determination
• Law
• Laughter

Example in Sentences

• Education is the key to life.
• All the teacher wanted was a proof.
• I will apply once the opportunity presents itself.
• They are calling for justice.
• You need to change your behaviour.
• Love makes the world go round.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

Exercise 1

Identify the nouns in the sentences and write whether it they are concrete or abstract.

1. A man must always have the courage to face every challenge.
2. No matter what happens, we must not lose hope.
3. My faith in God is very strong.
4. A person should buy a beautiful dress.
5. Have you seen the black dog?
6. Love is blind.

Exercise 2

Fill the blank with the appropriate form of the word in brackets.

1. She asked for my _______________ about this book. (advise)
2. The _________________ in Kenya is not as good as it was 10 years ago. (educate)
3. The way she answers questions shows she has above average _____________. (intelligent)
4. She explained the ________________ of physical exercise. (important)
5. _____________ means different things to different people. (happy)
6. ___________ is all that will help. (confident)
7. It is _______________ that comes before a fall. (proud)
8. His ______________ led him to kill Ojwang. (angry)
9. The composition she wrote showed a high level of ______________. (imagine)
10. You will die out of ___________. (lonely)

• COUNT AND NON COUNT NOUNS

A concrete noun can either be categorized as count or non-count.

Count Nouns

• A count noun can be expressed in plural form, normally with an “-s”, for example,
• Season – seasons
• Dog – dogs
• Teacher – teachers
• When you look around the classroom, there are things that you can count. What are they? The list of things you can probably see are:
• Chairs
• Tables
• Flag
• Textbooks
• Desks
• Cups
• Such nouns can be preceded by appropriate articles, whether singular or plural.

Non-Count Nouns

• Also referred to as mass nouns.
• Nouns falling under this category are those:
• That cannot be counted
• That do not have plural forms.
• Below are the examples of non-count nouns.
• Luggage
• Weather
• Equipment
• Oxygen
• Wood
• Plastic
• Hair
• Air
• Milk
• Juice
• Beer
• Soccer
• Biology
• Reading
• Glass
• Sunshine
• Rice
• History
• News
• Mathematics
• Electricity
• Meat
• Furniture

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

Examples in Sentences

1. This is school equipment.
2. Plastic is a non conductor.

PLURAL NOUNS

• There are rules for spelling plural nouns.

General Rules for Spelling Plural Nouns

1. Most nouns add “-s”, for example

• Book – books
• Pen – pens
• Phone – phones

2. Most nouns that end in “-ch”, “-sh”, “-s”, “-x”, or “-z” add “-ies”, for example,

• Church – churches
• Box – boxes
• Prize – prizes
• Bus – buses

3. Most nouns that end in a consonant and “-y” becomes “-ies”, for example,

• Spy – spies
• Community – communities
• Activity – activities
• Country – countries

4. Most nouns that end in “-f”, or “-fe” add “-ves”, for example,

• Elf – elves
• Wolf – wolves
• Half – halves
• Knife – knives
• Scarf – scarves

5. Some nouns that end in a consonant and “o”, add “-es”, for example,

• Tomato – tomatoes
• Buffalo – buffaloes
• Volcano – volcanoes
• Hero – heroes
• Mosquito – mosquitoes

6. Some nouns only change their vowels, for example,

• Goose – geese
• Man – men
• Mouse – mice
• Tooth – teeth

There are those that do not change at all, for example,

• Deer
• Species
• Fish
• Sheep
• There are a few nouns that have plural forms which are left from old English, for example,
• Child – children
• Ox – oxen
• Then there are those of Latin origin. They are like:
• Antenna – antennae
• Appendix – appendices, appendixes
• Cactus – cacti
• Stadium – stadia, stadiums
• Terminus – termini, terminuses
• Referendum – referenda, referendums
• Index – indices, indexes
• Formula – formulae, formulas
• Curriculum – curricula, curriculums

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

ARTICLES

• An article is a kind of adjective.
• It is used with a noun and gives some information about that noun.
• There are two articles:
• A
• The
• The article “a” has a form “an”.
• Article “a” is known as the indefinite article. It is called indefinite since the noun it goes with is indefinite or general.
• The form “an” is used when the noun it precedes begins with a vowel.
• The article “a” has the same meaning as number “one”. For example, one can say:

I have bought a pen. Or

I have bought one pen.

• The article “the” is definite article.
• A definite article indicates a specific thing. Can you identify the difference between the pair of sentences below?
• I bought a pen.
• I bought the pen.

The second sentence shows that I bought a particular pen, and not any other.

• The article “the” is used with count nouns when:
• We use the noun a second and subsequent times.
• The listener knows what you are referring to.

Exercise

Fill in the blank with appropriate article. Leave the space blank if no article is needed.

1. I have to eat ______________ apple today.
2. She has __________ dog at home.
3. My son has learnt how to play __________ piano.
4. Tom likes to play ______________ basketball.
5. There is ___________ new book on the table.
6. ___________ teacher is late this morning.
7. ___________ ink in my pen is black.
8. She speaks _________ Japanese.
9. What ___________ expensive bike!
10. He is _____________ honest person.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

 PRONOUNS

PERSONAL PRONOUNS

• They represent specific people or things.
• They are used depending on:
• Number: whether singular or plural
• Person: whether first, second, or third persons
• Gender: whether male, female, or neuter
• Case : whether in the case of subject or object

Number versus Person

Number	First Person	Second Person	Third Person
Singular	I	You	He/she/it
Plural	We	You	They

Gender versus Person

Person	Gender
	Male	Female	Neuter
First person
Second person
Third person	He	She	It

Case

• The pronouns used as subjects are:
• I
• We
• He
• She
• It
• They
• You
• The pronouns below are used as objects:
• Me
• Us
• Him
• Her
• It
• You
• Them

Examples in Sentences

• I like it.
• You are my best friend.
• She is running from the truth.
• Get me that book please.
• They are interviewing them.

Exercise 1

Fill the blanks with correct forms of pronouns in brackets.

1. __________ am the new class prefect. (me)
2. ___________ doesn’t matter. (they)
3. Does Martha like ____________? (he)
4. Killion helped ___________. (I)
5. Did you see ___________ ? (she)

Exercise 2

Replace the underlined words with an appropriate pronoun.

1. The old gate doesn’t look good.
2. Tom and Mary went to school.
3. The dog bit the doctor and the chief.
4. Moses runs faster than Rebecca.
5. Phiona and Ruth played doubles.
6. Christine is clever.
7. I brought the dress.
8. Antony drove Junet and me.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS

• We use possessive pronouns to refer to a specific person or people, or thing or things that belong to a person or people, or things.
• Just like personal pronouns, they are used depending on:
• Number
• Person
• Gender
• Case

Number  and Person

• In singular we use:

Mine – first  Person

Yours  — second person

His/hers/its – third person

• In plural, use:

Ours – first person

Yours – second person

Theirs – third person

Gender

• For male gender, the pronoun below are used:

His

• For female gender use, hers

Case

A possessive pronoun can either be a subject or object.

Examples in Sentences

• Mine is that one.
• This one is mine.
• The cars are yours.
• Yours are those ones over there.
• Hers has been stolen.
• This building is ours.

Exercise

Complete each sentence with the possessive pronoun form of the word(s) underlined.

1. Martha did _____________ homework in time.
2. Have you got ___________ money.
3. I like your name. Do you like ___________ ?
4. Hector and Emmy have seen your bag. Have you seen ____________?
5. Jane, my flowers are dying. ____________ are good.
6. I have come with my sister. ___________ name is Alice.
7. Sophie and Gerges study Science. _____________ teacher is kind.
8. We love __________ new boss.
9. He is in __________ house.
10. Are you and your friend enjoying __________ weekend?
11. The cat has bit ___________ tail.
12. Right has a brother. ___________ is 10 years old.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

 REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS

• They are special kind of pronouns.
• A reflexive pronoun is used when the object of a sentence is the same as the subject.
• Each personal pronoun has its own reflexive form.
• The table below shows personal pronouns with their equivalent reflexive pronouns.

Personal Pronoun	Reflexive Pronoun
I	Myself
You (singular)	Yourself
You (plural)	Yourselves
He	Himself
She	Herself
It	Itself
We	Ourselves
They	Themselves

 

When Reflexive Pronouns are Used

Reflexive pronouns are used when:

• The object and the subject are similar. For example,
• She bit herself.

The subject she and the object herself are similar.

• They betrayed
• Matthew likes himsel
• They are used as the object of prepositions. In the sentences below, the words underlined are the prepositions and the ones in boldface are the objects of those prepositions.
• Young bought a pencil for himself.
• Halima mopped the room by herself.
• The mad man talks to himself.
• They are also used when emphasizing the subjects. Examples
• I ate all the rice myself. This means no one else had any.
• Dan will wash the clothes himself. This means she will be helped by no one.

Can you differentiate between the pair of sentences below?

She bought the pen herseif.

She bought the dress for herself.

Exercise

Fill the correct form of reflexive pronoun for each blank space.

1. In the evening, we went to the market to buy _________________ food to cook.
2. I don’t know whether they went to school or whether they taught ______________ .
3. If you hurt ______________ , don’t cry to anyone.
4. This cat caught the rat _____________ .
5. Whenever I see ___________ in a mirror, I smile to ___________ .
6. That little duck is washing _____________ in the pond.
7. Jonathan ate all the food _____________ .
8. Good evening everyone? Please make _____________ comfortable.
9. Since the school is their father’s, they give _______________ break whenever they feel like.
10. Mary bought the dress for _____________ .

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

FUNCTIONS OF PRONOUNS

• A pronoun can be used where a noun or a noun phrase can be used in a sentence.
• Pronouns perform the following functions in a sentence:
• As the Subject of a Verb
• The subject of verb is that which performs that action.
• Some of the pronouns used as subjects of the verbs are:

He

She

I

They

We etc

Examples in Sentences

1. He is my best friend.
2. You are the one I saw.

• They are the school administrators.

 

• As the Object of A Verb
• An object is the recipient of the action.
• Some object pronouns include:

Me

You

Him

Her

Them

It etc

Examples in Sentences

1. Richard escorted him.
2. He separated them.

• I saw her.
• As the Object of a preposition

An object of preposition immediately follows the preposition.

Examples

1. I will think about it.
2. I bought it for him.

VERBS

• A verb is a word that shows an action, state, or even an occurrence.
• There are two main verb types:
• Lexical verbs
• Auxiliary verbs
• In this section, we shall study Lexical verbs.

LEXICAL VERBS

• A lexical verb is the main verb in a sentence.
• It does not need a helping verb as it carries the meaning.
• The examples are:
• Talk
• Sing
• Run
• Jump
• Eat
• Go etc
• Depending on how they form their past tense and past participle forms, they are grouped as regular or irregular verbs.

Examples in Sentences

1. I work at the station.
2. She drives a fancy car.
3. I gave you all I had.

REGULAR AND IRREGULAR VERBS

• Verbs are subdivided into regular and irregular verbs depending on how their past tense and past participles are formed.
• A regular verb adds –ed or –d to the end of the base forms.

Examples of Regular Verbs

Verb	Past Tense	Past Participle
Call Plan Jump Kill Fill	Called Planned Jumped killed filled	Called Planned Jumped Killed filled

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

Examples In Sentences

1. He jumped over the fence.
2. He killed the cat.

• For Irregular verbs, there is no formula that predict their past tense and past participle forms.
• They include:

Verb	Past Tense	Past Participle
Sweep Cut Come Go Meet Is/am	Swept Cut Came Went Met Was	Swept Cut Came Went Met Been

Examples in Sentences

1. He ran towards the river.
2. Have you repaid the loan?
3. I have swum.

TENSES

SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

• The simple present tense is used to express:

1. Habitual actions, for example,
2. She eats fish.
3. She washes her clothes every week.
4. We see movies every evening.
5. Some general truths, for example,
6. Water boils at 100 degrees.
7. The month of April has 30 days.

Points to Remember on The Simple Present Third Person Singular

• The verb usually ends in –s, for example,

1. He runs
2. She runs

• It runs
• Negative and question are “does”, for example,

1. He does not run.
2. Does he run?

• She does not run.

1. Does she run?

• In case of negative and question, the next verb after “does” does not add an -s

Present Simple Tense – Negative

A negative sentence is usually formed by using “not”.

Examples in Sentences

1. I do not like it.
2. We do not like it.
3. You do not like it.

1. She does not like it.
2. He does not like it.
3. They do not like it.

Present Simple Tense – Questions

The questions are formed  by using either “do” or “does” at the beginning.

Examples in Sentences

1. Do you like it?
2. Do we like it?
3. Do you like it?

1. Does she like it?
2. Does he like it?
3. Do they like it?

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

Exercise 1

Rewrite each sentence below following the instruction in brackets. Do not change the meaning of the sentence.

1. I live in Maragua. (begin with: do)
2. Right comes to school daily. (begin: does)
3. She does not play rugby. (do not use: not)
4. The train leaves at 8.00 am. (use: 9.00 am)
5. Does he forget his wallet? (begin: he)

Exercise 2

Use the correct form of the verb in brackets to complete each of the following sentences.

1. I ______________ fifteen years old now. (be)
2. Moureen ______________ at Githurai. (live)
3. Emilly ___________ dinner for them. (cook)
4. The students ____________ lunch at 1.00 pm. (eat)
5. My grandmother ____________ medicine when she is sick. (take)
6. It normally ____________ here in April. (rain)
7. It _____________ in May as much as it does in March. (rain)
8. They ___________ French twice a week. (study)
9. Mr Gregory ______________ Geography at Lukenya High School.
10. George _____________ to church every Sunday. (go)

SIMPLE PAST TENSE

• A simple past tense is used to talk about a completed action in a time before now.
• The time of action can be in the recent past or the distant past.

Examples

1. I walked all the way to school.
2. We saw them at the restaurant.
3. They played the piano.
4. She ate her lunch at 1.00 pm.

How to Form the Simple Past Tense

Simple Past in Negative Statement

The pattern here is:

Subject+Auxiliary+not

She did not call.

Simple Past in Interrogative

Did she call you?

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

Exercise

Fill in the correct form of word in brackets to complete each sentence.

1. I ______________ to the theatre last week. (go)
2. It _________ interesting. (be)
3. I __________ three sites last year. (visit)
4. It ____________ as it did the the previous week. (rain)
5. She ____________ a single card from her relatives.(receive)
6. We ___________ to a new house last month. (move)
7. They ____________ us pizza yesterday. (bring)
8. I ____________ a big lion. (see)
9. Where _______________ your last weekend? (spend/you)
10. It was cold, so  I _________________ off my coat. (take)
11. Since the door was opened, the bird _____________ into the house.
12. The car wasn’t expensive. It _____________ very much. (cost)

ADJECTIVES

COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE FORMS

Comparatives

The comparative form of an adjective is used to compare  two people or things. Example

He is quicker than Ngure.

Superlatives

The superlative form of an adjective is used to compare more than two people or things. Example

He is the quickest of the three.

Ways of Making Comparative and Superlative Adjectives

• Adjectives with One Syllable

In general, if an adjective has one syllable, then –er  or –r for comparative and –est  or –st for supelatives are added to the adjective. Examples

Adjective	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
Hot Tall Small Large Thin Nice	Hotter Taller Smaller Larger Thinner Nicer	Hottest Tallest Smallest Largest Thinnest Nicest

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

• Adjectives with Two Syllables
• There are those that simply add –er or –r for comparative, and –est or –st for superlative. Examples

1. Feeble Feebler   Feeblest

• some use theword “more” for comparative, and “most” for superlative forms. Examples

1. famous more famous      most famous

• There are those that can do with either ­–er or –r , or more for comparative and –est or –st , or most for superlative. They are special adjectives.Examples

1. Clever Cleverer  (more clever)   Cleverest (most clever)
2. Simple Simpler (more simple)   Simplest (most simple)

• Other special adjectives are:
• Quiet
• Polite
• Pleasant
• Likely
• Commonly
• Sure
• Adjectives with Three or More Syllables

Word more  for comparative and most for superlatives are used. Examples

Interesting   moreinteresting   most interesting

Attractive     more attractive    most attractive

• Irregular adjectives

Some adjectives have Irregular comparative and superlative forms. Examples

Adjective	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
Bad Good Little Much	Worse Better Less More	Worst Best Least Most

 REGULAR AND IRREGULAR ADJECTIVES

• The way an adjective make comparative and superlative forms is what determines whether it is regular or irregular.

Regular Adjectives

• A regular adjective adds –er or more in comparative form, and –est or most for superlatives.
• The table below illustrates this.

Adjective	Comparative	Superlative
Small Nice Pretty Beautiful	Smaller Nicer Prettier More beautiful	Smallest Nicest Prettiest Most beautiful

Irregular Adjectives

• They have completely different forms.
• It is not easy to predict their comparative and superlative forms.
• Examples are:
• Good
• Bad etc

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

GRADABLE AND NON GRADABLE ADJECTIVES

Gradable Adjectives

• A gradable adjective has different degrees.
• You can say “very hot” or “a bit hot”. Hot is therefore a gradable adjective. Other gradable adjectives are:
• Cold
• Warm
• Tall
• Nice etc
• There are grading adverbs that can be used with gradable adjectives. They include:
• A bit
• Very
• Extremely
• Quite
• Really
• So etc

Examples in Sentnces

1. It is extremely cold
2. This novel is quite interesting.

• The girl is very beautiful.

1. She is reasonably popular.

Non-Gradable Adjectives

• They do not have different degrees.
• Some examples of non gradable adjectives are:
• Excellent
• Impossible
• Digital
• Domestic
• Unique
• Absolutely
• Nearly
• Chemical
• Totally
• One cannot say “very dead” or “really dead”. The adjective “dead” is thus, a non-gradable adjective.
• A grading adverb cannot be used with the non-gradable adjectives.

Example in a Sentence

1. The dead relative will be buried soon.

ADVERBS

ADVERBS OF MANNER

• They tell us the manner in which the action happened, happens, or will happen.
• The examples are:
• Carefully
• Slowly
• Loudly
• Easily etc

Examples in Sentences

1. She answered it correctly.
2. The problem was solved easily.
3. He drives
4. He walked quickly.
5. He runs fast.

ADVERBS OF TIME

• An adverb of time tell us when an action happens.
• An adverb of time can also tell us for how long that action occurred. For example, three months.
• Some examples of adverbs of time are:
• Today
• Next week
• Late
• Early
• Morning
• Last year
• Two months time, etc

Examples in Sentences

1. I saw it yesterday.
2. He came to school late.
3. She watched the whole day.

ADVERBS OF FREQUENCY

• These are adverbs that answer questions “How frequently?” or “how often?”.
• They tell us how often something happens.
• There are two types of adverbs of frequency:

1. Adverbs of definite frequency, for example,

• Monthly
• Daily
• Hourly
• Weekly
• Yearly
• Every minute
• Twice a month
• Once
• Three times a day, etc

Examples in Sentences

• Employees pay taxes monthly.
• The storekeeper checks the store every day.
• I review my notes every week.

1. Adverbs of indefinite frequency, for example,

• Never
• Sometimes
• Often
• Always
• Seldom
• Frequently
• Occasionally
• Usually

Examples in Sentences

1. She is never
2. I often do my assignment.
3. They sometimes visit me.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

PREPOSITIONS

SIMPLE PREPOSITIONS

• A preposition joins words together and show the relationship between the different parts of a sentence.
• The following are the simple prepositions with examples in sentences:

1. In, on, at

He is in the house.

The cup is on the table.

He teaches at a school in Wajir.

2. Above, below

Most students scored above 50.

Few students scored below 4o.

3. Over, under

Don’t jump over the fence.

The cat is hiding under the bed.

4. Around, through

The flowers we planted around the house.

The spear went through his body.

5. Before, after

I will see him before lunch.

He is leaving after lunch.

6. To, from

I am coming from Limuru.

I am going to Nairobi.

7. About, by

Have you read the story about an ogre?

The story was written by Kendagor.

8. With, without

He didn’t want to go with us.

We went without him.

9. Between, among

This is a secret between you and me.

There is no secret among many.

10. Inside, outside

The bottle is inside the box.

The spoon is outside the box.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

PREPOSITIONS COMBINATIONS

Adjective+Preposition

Specific prepositions are used after certain adjectives. There is no definite rule to ascertain which preposition should be used with which adjective. We simply need to learn them.

Here is a list of some commonly used adjectives and the prepositions that normally follow them:

ADJECTIVE	PREPOSITION
accustomed	To
Afraid	Of
Accused	Of
acquainted	With
Addicted	To
Annoyed	about/with/at
Allergic	To
Amazed	at/by
Anxious	About
appreciated	For
Ashamed	Of
associated	With
astonished	at/by
Aware	Of
Angry	With
Afraid	Of
Attached	To
Bad	At
Based	On
beneficial	To
Boastful	For
Bored	With
Brilliant	At
Busy	With
Capable	Of
Careful	with/about/of
Certain	About
characteristic	Of
Clever	At
connected	With
conscious	Of
Content	With
Crazy	About
Crowded	With
Curious	About
dissatisfied	With
Doubtful	About
Delighted	at/about
Derived	From
Different	From
disappointed	With
Eager	For
Eligible	For
enthusiastic	About
Excellent	in/at
Excited	About
experienced	In
Exposed	To
Envious	Of
Faithful	To
Familiar	With
Famous	For
fed up	With
Free	of/from
frightened	Of
Friendly	With
Fond	Of
Furious	About
Furnished	With
Full	Of
Generous	with/about
Guilty	of/about
Gentle	With
Good	At
Grateful	To
Happy	About
Hopeful	of/about
Identical	with/to
Immune	To
impressed	With
Inferior	To
indifferent	To
Innocent	Of
interested	In
Involved	With
Incapable	Of
Jealous	Of
Kind	To
Keen	On
Late	For
Limited	To
Lucky	At
Nervous	of/about
Notorious	For
Opposed	To
Patient	With
pessimistic	About
Pleased	With
Polite	To
Popular	With
Presented	With
Proud	Of
Punished	For
Puzzled	by/about
Qualified	For
Ready	For
Related	To
Relevant	To
respectful	For
responsible	For
Rid	Of
Sad	About
Safe	From
Satisfied	With
Scared	Of
Sensitive	To
Serious	About
Sick	Of
Similar	To
Shocked	By
Skilful	At
Slow	At
Sorry	for/about
successful	In
Suitable	For
Sure	of/about
Superior	To
Surprised	At
suspicious	Of
sympathetic	With
terrible	At
terrified	Of
tired	Of
thankful	to/for
trilled	With
troubled	With
typical	Of
unaware	Of
upset	About
used	To
wrong	with/about
worried	About

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

Examples in Sentences

1.      It was nice of you to help me. 2.      Why are you so angry about it? They were furious with me for not inviting them to my party. 3.      I was disappointed with the book she bought me. 4.      I was pleased with the present you gave me. Were you disappointed with your examination result 5.      They have been astonished by something. 6.      Everyone was surprised by /at the news. 7.      Are you excited about going on holiday next week? 8.      Are you afraid of dogs? 9.      I’m not ashamed of what I did. 10.  I’m not very good at driving big cars. 11.  Your composition is full of errors. 12.  Your name is similar to mine.

Verb +Preposition Combination

• Some verbs need a preposition before an object or another verb.
• These kinds are called dependent prepositions and they are followed by a noun or a gerund (‘ing’ form).
• Here are some other verbs with their dependent prepositions.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

account for

accuse SO of ST

adapt to

add SO/ST to SO/ST

add to

adjust to

admit ST to SO

admit to

agree on

agree to

agree with

apologize to SO for ST

appeal to SO for ST

approve of

argue with SO about SO/ST

argue with SO over ST

arrange for SO (to do something)

arrest SO for ST

arrive at (a place)

ask for

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

base on

be absent from (a place)

be accustomed to

be acquainted with

be addicted to ST

be afraid of

be angry at SO for ST

be angry with SO for ST

be annoyed at SO for ST

be annoyed with SO for ST

be anxious about ST

be associated with

be aware of

be blessed with

be bored by

be bored with

be capable of ST

be cluttered with ST

be committed to

be composed of

be concerned about

be connected to

be connected with

be content with

be convinced of ST

be coordinated with ST

be crowded in (a building or room)

be crowded with (people)

be dedicated to

be devoted to

be disappointed in

be disappointed with

be discouraged by

be discouraged from (doing something)

be discriminated against

be divorced from SO

be done with ST

be dressed in

be encouraged with

be engaged in ST

be engaged to SO

be envious of

be equipped with ST

be excited about

be exposed to

be faced with

be faithful to

be familiar with

be famous for

be filled with

be finished with

be fond of

be friendly to SO

be friendly with SO

be frightened by

be frightened of

be furnished with ST

be grateful to SO for ST

be guilty of ST

be happy about ST

be innocent of ST

be interested in

be involved in ST

be involved with

be jealous of

be known for ST

be limited to

be made from ST

be made of (material)

be married to

be opposed to

be patient with SO

be pleased with

be polite to SO

be prepared for

be protected from

be proud of

be related to

be relevant to

be remembered for ST

be responsible for

be satisfied with

be scared of

be terrified of

be thankful for

be tired from (doing something)

be tired of (doing something)

be worried about

beg for

begin with

believe in

belong to

benefit from

blame SO for ST

blame ST on SO

boast about

borrow ST from SO

 

care about

care for

catch up with

cater to

charge SO for ST

charge SO with ST

choose between SO/ST and SO/ST

chose ST from ST

collide with

come from

comment on

communicate with SO

compare SO/ST to SO/ST

compare SO/ST with SO/ST

compete with

complain about

compliment SO on ST

concentrate on

concern SO with ST

confess to

confuse SO/ST with SO/ST

congratulate SO on ST

consent to ST

consist of

contribute to ST

convict SO of ST

cope with

correspond with SO

count on

cover with

crash into

cure SO of ST

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

deal with

decide against

decide between SO/ST and SO/ST

decide on

dedicate ST to SO

demand ST from SO

depend on

derive ST from ST

deter SO from ST

devote ST to SO

differ from

disagree with

disapprove of

discourage SO from ST

discuss ST with SO

distinguish between SO/ST and SO/ST

distinguish SO/ST from SO/ST

distract SO from ST

dream about

dream of

dress SO in ST

drink to

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

elaborate on ST

emerge from ST

escape from (a place)

exchange SO/ST for SO/ST

exclude SO from ST

excuse SO for ST

expel SO from (a place)

experiment on

explain ST to SO

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

feel about

feel like

fight about

fight against

fight for

fight with

forget about

forgive SO for ST

 

gamble on

gawk at

gaze at

get back from (a place)

get married to SO

get rid of

get through with

get tired of

get used to

give ST to SO

glare at

gloat at

grieve for

gripe at SO

grumble at SO about ST

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

happen to

harp on

hear about

hear from SO

hear of

help SO with ST

hide ST from SO

hinder SO/ST from ST

hinge on

hope for

 

insist on

insure against

interfere in ST

interfere with ST

introduce SO/ST to SO/ST

invest in

invite SO to

involve SO/ST in ST

jabber about

joke about

joke with SO about SO/ST

jot down ST

 

laugh about

laugh at

learn about

lend ST to SO

listen for

listen to

long for

look at

look forward to

 

meet with SO

mistake SO/ST for SO/ST

nod at

nod to

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

object to

operate on

 

participate in ST

pay for

persist in

plan on

praise SO for ST

pray for

prefer SO/ST to SO/ST

prepare for

present SO with ST

prevent SO/ST from (doing something)

prohibit SO from (doing something)

provide for

provide SO with ST

provide SO/ST for SO

punish SO for ST

 

react to

recover from ST

refer to ST

relate to

rely on

remind SO of SO/ST

reply to

rescue SO from SO/ST

resign from ST

respond to

result in ST

retire from ST

save SO from ST

search for

sentence SO to ST

separate SO/ST from SO/ST

share ST with SO

shout at

show ST to SO

smile at SO

speak to SO about SO/ST

specialize in ST

spend (money/time) on

stand for

stare at

stem from

stop SO from (doing something)

subject SO to ST

subscribe to

substitute SO/ST for SO/ST

subtract ST from ST

succeed at ST

succeed in (doing something)

suffer from

suspect SO of ST

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

take advantage of

take care of

talk about

talk to

tell SO about ST

thank SO for ST

think about

think of

toast to

translate ST into (a language)

trust SO with ST

turn to

use ST for ST

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

vote against

vote for

wait for

warn about

waste (money/time) on

wish for

work for

work on

worry about

write about

write to SO

yap about

yearn for

Exercise 1

Fill the blank spaces with the most appropriate prepositions.

1. She has placed the cup _____________ the table.
2. I will allow you go _________ the field.
3. She is singing _________ her room.
4. Is he ________ home now?
5. He lives _________ Nairobi.
6. Don’t be late _________ class.
7. Compare your points __________ your friend’s.
8. Are the new student ________ Ethiopia?
9. Rich is still ________ vacation.
10. My daughter’s birthday is ________ May.

Answers

1. On
2. To
3. In
4. At
5. In
6. For
7. With
8. From
9. On
10. In

Exercise 2

Complete the sentences with the most appropriate prepositions.

1. It was stupid …………………her to go out without a coat.
2. Everyone was pleased ………………….the marks they scored.
3. I am bored ………………..singing every morning.
4. Are you interested ………………..sports?
5. Kenya is famous ……………… her athletes.
6. I will be happy to see married ……………. Gregory.
7. The town is crowded with people.
8. You will be held responsible …………………anything that happens.
9. She is sorry ……………….. her behavior last night.
10. You should be sorry …………………..missing the lesson.
11. Jemimah is fond …………………. dogs.
12. I am keen ………….. leave this school.
13. What are you excited ……………..?
14. It seems she is upset ………………something.
15. You shouldn’t be worried …………………anything as long as I am around.

Answers

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

• Of
• With
• With
• In
• For
• To
• With
• For
• About
• For
• Of
• On
• About
• About
• About

CONJUNCTIONS

COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS

• A coordinating conjunction connects words, phrases, and clauses.
• And, but, for, nor, or, so, and yet are the known coordinating conjunctions.

Examples in Sentences

1. This is a beautiful girl, but a difficult one to convince.
2. It was cold, so I put on my jacket.

• This tea is thick and sweet.

1. Do you like white rice, or brown rice?

Functions of Coordinating Conjunctions

Conjunction	Function	Example in a Sentence
And	Joins two similar ideas	Jane and Mary are in form one.
But	Joins two contrasting ideas	He drives slowly, but sure.
Or	Joins two alternative ideas	We can go to Naivasha, or stay here and watch news.
So	Shows the second idea is the result of the first	I was sick, so I did not go to school.
Nor	Joins two negative alternatives.	He doesn’t wake up early, nor do I.
For	Give a reason	I was punished, for I was late.
Yet	Joins two contrasting ideas (means “but”)	I was punished, yet I arrived early.

Exercise

Join each pair of sentences with an appropriate coordinating conjunction.

1. I love to travel. I hate travelling by bus.
2. You should go to bed now. You will be tired tomorrow.
3. The bus stopped. Two passengers got out of it.
4. Helen was angry with Jane. Helen went out to cool down.
5. I arrived at school late. I left home early.

Answers

1. I love to travel but I hate travelling by bus.
2. You should go to bed now, or you will be tired tomorrow.
3. The bus stopped and two passengers got out of it.
4. Helen was angry with Jane, so she went out to cool down.
5. I arrived at school late, yet I left home early.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

 PHRASES

• A phrase is a group of words without a subject and a verb and which does not make sense on its own.
• There are various types of phrases. They include:
• Noun phrases
• Verb phrases
• Adjective phrases
• Adverb phrases
• Prepositional phrases
• At your level, we will only study noun phrases.

NOUN PHRASES

• A noun phrase is a group of words that plays role of a noun and has a noun has the head word (main word).
• Look at the example below.
• I saw Bingo. The word in bold is a noun
• I saw your dog. In boldface, is the noun phrase that has replaced the noun in above sentence.

Examples of Noun Phrases

The new car

My old shirt

The best car safety device

Constituents of a Noun Phrase

• A noun phrase consists of:
• A determiner, which can be an article, a number, or an adjective.
• Modifiers, which can be an adjective, or combinations of adjectives.
• Modifiers can either be premodifier if it comes before the main noun, or post modifier if it follows the noun.
• Determiners precede modifiers.
• Study the noun phrases.

Phrase	Determiner	Pre modifier	Main noun	Post Modifier
The tall woman The longest river Your sister Any big supermarket nearby	The The Your Any	Tall Longest   Big	Woman River Sister Supermarket	Nearby

Exercise

Underline the noun phrase in each of the sentences below.

1. Did you see the tall man?
2. He called all the stubborn students.
3. He wishes to see the president.
4. He bought her a beautiful white blouse.
5. An horse prefers living in dark stables.
6. It is disgraceful to write such rubbish.
7. The people’s president is in Mombasa.
8. The girl in blue skirt is my sister.
9. The soldiers are true heroes.
10. My best friend is Teris.

SIMPLE SENTENCES

A simple sentence has one clause —independent

• SENTENCE STRUCTURE (SUBJECT, PREDICATE)
• A simple sentence has the formula:

Subject + Predicate

• Look at the example below.

This desk is mine.

• This desk – Subject
• Is mine – the predicate
• A subject is the one doing the action.
• Predicate is the part of the sentence which talks about the subject and which has a verb.
• The predicate must contain a verb. The other constituents of a predicate can be an adverb, adjective, pronoun, etc.
• Can you identify the subject and predicate in each of the sentences below?
• She came to see me.
• Njoroge was here.
• I saw them dancing.
• This is the cheapest dress in town.
• You are a big fool.

TYPES OF SENTENCES

INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES

• An interrogative sentence is used to ask questions.
• There are various question types:
• Yes/no questions
• Alternative questions
• Tag questions
• w/h questions

Yes/No Questions

• They are answered with yes or no as answers.
• Examples are:
• Did you score everything?
• Have you seen it?

Alternative Questions

• There are options two to be chosen from.
• Examples are:
• Would you like to take tea, or coffee?
• Do you want a red pen, or blue one?

Tag Questions

• There is the statement part, which is followed by a comma, and then the question part.
• Examples are:
• She is the thief, isn’t she?
• It does not smell good, does it?

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

W/H Questions

• The first word start with the two letters “w and h”.
• Those words used for asking these questions are: who, where, which, how, why, what
• Examples
• Who sent you?
• Where do you live?

Exercise

Form three different question types from the sentence:

You stole my cap.

Answer

1. Did you steal my red cap? Yes/no
2. Who stole my red cap? w/h
3. You stole me red cap, didn’t you?

 IMPERATIVE SENTENCES

• An imperative sentence issues a request or a direct command.
• Usually, imperative sentences begin with verbs.
• Depending on the strength of the emotion, and the forcefulness of the command, it can end in either a full stop (.) or an exclamation mark (!).

Examples

1. Complete your assignment by afternoon!
2. Kindly open the door.

• Turn left at the cross road.

End Punctuation Marks with Imperative Sentences

• If the command is forceful, use an exclamation mark (!). for example,

Leave now!

Open the door!

• If the command is polite, or in the form of advice, put a period (.). examples,

Please get me my book.

Leave the door open.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

EXCLAMATORY SENTENCES

• An exclamatory sentence expresses emotion.
• The emotion can be of love, happiness, confusion, anger, etc.
• Usually ends with an exclamation mark.
• Use the word “what” or “how”before a noun.

Examples

• What a day!
• What awful plastic!
• What funny people they are!
• What a match!

Exercise

Rewrite each sentence beginning with the word “what” or “how”.

1. He is a foolish man.
2. This is a pleasant day.
3. That is clever of you.
4. They are lovely flowers.
5. He came early

Answers

1. What a foolish man!
2. What a pleasant day
3. How clever of you!
4. What lovely flowers!
5. How early he came!

AFFIRMATIVE SENTENCES

There are two types:

• Declarative
• Negative

DECLARATIVE SENTENCES/

• Used to make statements.
• End with a full stop or period (.).
• Here are examples of declarative sentences.
• My name is George.
• He brings me chocolate.
• She visited last year.
• I will leave in the evening.

NEGATIVE SENTENCES

• A negative sentence states that something is untrue.
• A negative adverb is added to negate the validity of the sentence.
• A negative statement is formed by adding the word “not” to the first auxiliary verb. Examples
• I did not abuse you.
• This novel does not have a good ending.
• You are not among the lucky ones.
• Dan did not steal from me, it was you.

Exercise

Negate the following sentences.

1. She has a bag.
2. I am sick.
3. He sells flowers.
4. They work there.
5. She writes good compositions.
6. It is interesting.

Answers

1. She does not have a bag.
2. I am not sick.
3. He doesn’t sell flowers.
4. They don’t work there.
5. She doesn’t write good compositions.
6. It is not interesting.

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

ANSWERS

PARTS OF SPEECH

NOUNS

COMMON NOUNS

1. The students were taught
2. I have visited a continent.
3. She lives in the city.
4. We eat in the hotel.
5. Have you ever swum in the river?
6. I drive a car.
7. Everyone went shopping at the supermarket.
8. A soldier is dead.
9. I come from a country.
10. I teach at a school.

PROPER NOUNS

1. I will take you to Rich’s Palace.
2. Sarah is the girl I told you about.
3. Of all the continents, I like Africa the most.
4. Gracy is the cutest kitten ever.
5. I am craving Oreos.
6. I used Tilly in cooking.
7. Jupiter is one of the planets.
8. Margaret was a great author.

CONCRETE NOUNS ABSTRACT NOUNS

Exercise 1

• A man must always have the courage to face every challenge.

Man – concrete

Courage – abstract

• No matter what happens, we must not lose hope.

Hope – abstract

• My faith in God is very strong.

Faith – abstract

God – concrete

• A person should buy a beautiful dress.

Person, dress – concrete

• Have you seen the black dog?

Dog – concrete

• Love is blind.

Love – abstract

Blind – concrete

Exercise 2

1. Advice
2. Education
3. Intelligence
4. Importance
5. Happiness
6. Confidence
7. Pride
8. Anger
9. Imagination
10. Loneliness

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

NUMBER

ARTICLES

• An
• A
• The
• No article
• A
• The
• The
• No article
• An
• An

 

 

PRONOUNS

PERSONAL PRONOUNS

Exercise 1

• I
• It
• Him
• Me
• Her

Exercise 2

• The old gate doesn’t look good.

It doesn’t  look good.

• Tom and Mary went to school.

They went to school.

• The dog bit the doctor and the chief.

It bit them.

• Moses runs faster than Rebecca.

He runs faster than Rebecca.

• Phiona and Ruth played doubles.

They played doubles.

• Christine is clever.

She is clever.

• I brought the dress.

I brought it.

• Antony drove Junet and me.

Anthony drove us.

 

POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS

• Her
• Your
• Mine
• Theirs
• Yours
• Her
• Their
• Our
• His
• Your
• Its
• His

GRAMMAR FOR FORM ONE

REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS

• Ourselves
• Themselves
• Yourself
• Itself
• Myself, myself
• Itself
• Himself
• Yourselves
• Themselves
• Herself

PHRASES

NOUN PHRASES

1. Did you see the tall man?
2. He called all the stubborn students.
3. He wishes to see the president.
4. He bought her a beautiful white blouse.
5. An horse prefers living in dark stables.
6. It is disgraceful to write such rubbish.
7. The people’s president is in Mombasa.
8. The girl in blue skirt is my sister.
9. The soldiers are true heroes.
10. My best friend is Teris.

ALL ENGLISH NOTES FORM 1-4 WITH TOPICAL QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

PRIMARY NOTES, SCHEMES OF WORK AND EXAMINATIONS