Student Writing Handbook Fifth+Edition

PA R T I V

GRAMMAR, USAGE,

AND MECHANICS

T

he revising and proofreading steps of the writing process require that you apply

accurate grammar, usage, and mechanics to your paper. While lengthy books are

available to describe the complexities of the English language, this section should

suffice to answer most of the questions and solve most of the problems you encoun-

ter as you polish your writing for an audience.

This section functions in the following ways:

•    as a basic grammar reference to help you classify the parts of speech and parts

of a sentence

•    as a reference for usage to help you clarify ways to solve problems with

subject-verb agreement, pronoun usage, and adjective and adverb usage

•    as a syntax reference to help you identify various kinds of phrases and clauses

•    as a mechanics handbook to help you with rules and examples for punctuation

The index will help you locate items quickly; the glossary will provide short

definitions.

CONTENTS

GRAMMAR, USAGE,

AND MECHANICS 403