(PG = Prescriptive Grammar  —  DG = Descriptive Grammar)

(GL = Grammatical Lingo  —  OB = Obtuse  —  NG = Not Grammatical)

• P, p  —  [PG]  The Letter “P” Is The Sixteenth Letter Of The English Alphabet.  It Is Also The Twelfth Consonant In The English Alphabet.

• Palindrome —  [NG]  The Term “Palindrome” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is simply the Term for a Word, Number, Phrase, or sequence of Characters — which is in exactly the same order both forward and backward.

Examples:  “Mom”, “Bob”, “Civic”, “Deified”, 232, 323, 11:11, 12/12/2121

• Paragraph  —  [DG]  The Term “Paragraph” is used to refer to singular piece of Text, within a larger work.  A Paragraph can be a comprised-of only a single Sentence — but usually consists of multiple Sentences.

The information contained within a Paragraph is usually all related or somehow distinct from the information in other Paragraphs in the overall piece of writing.

The Paragraph is often off-set by the fist line being indented, or by adding a space in-between each Paragraph — as is being done in this description — or a combination of both.

• Paraphrase  —  [NG]  The Term “Paraphrase” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Literary Term used to describe the act of, or result of, Summarizing some information — stating it in a different way, but with the same essential meaning.

This is either done intentionally — or is done because the person Paraphrasing (either in Spoken or Written form) does not remember the exact Words used by an-other — or it is not necessary to remember them in that instance.

• Participle  —  [DG]  The Term “Participle” is usually not used alone — other than in definitions of Grammatical Terms.  This is because there are only two “Participle” forms in English Grammar.  Those are:  The Past Participle & Present Participle form of Verbs.

Those Terms are used to say what form of a Verb it must be in for various Verb Tenses.  The Past Participle form of a Verb often has an “-en” Suffix:  “Spoken”,  ‘Written”.  The Present Participle form of a Verb is formed with The “-ing” Suffix:  “Speaking”, “Writing”.

• Particle  —  [DG]  The Term “Particle” is used to refer to a Word (or pseudo-Word — like when we spell the sounds that we make that aren’t really Word.  Like “ahhh”, “oh”, “hmmm”, “yumm”)…  which does not fit into any of the categories of Grammatical Unit — or “Parts Of Speech” in Traditional Grammar — but must be associated with another Word to impart meaning.

The only example of this in Grammar is the Particle “To” when it is joined with a Verb in the Infinitive form.

In-other-words — the Word “To” has no Meaning, and it does not fit into any other Grammatical Classification.  But, it has a Function with the Verb.  So it is referred to as a “Particle”.

Basically the Term “Particle” is used to classify Words & Expressions that don’t seem to fit into any other classification.

• Parts Of Speech  —  [OB]  The Term “Parts Of Speech” is used in Traditional Grammar to refer to the different types of Words.  It is considered to be the same thing as the Term “Word-Classes”.  But any logical analysis of either of these Terms makes it CLEAR that neither of these Terms is very good for what they are supposed to represent.

First Of All — The Term “Parts Of Speech” completely eliminates the written form of the Language, and thus makes no sense.

Secondly — The Term “Word-Classes” — which seems much more logical — does not work either, because it could include all the other classifications of Words which are NOT the so-called “Parts Of Speech”.

But Most Importantly — The reason that it was necessary to use more perfected Terms in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — is because the actual types of Words that are actually considered to be the “Parts Of Speech” or “Word-Classes” is not agreed-upon from one teacher or text-book to the next.  Some say there are 7, others say 10 — I have even seen up to 13!!!

It is for these reasons that the Term “Parts Of Speech”  is NOT used in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue.  In The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — refer use the Term “Grammatical Units”.  And more specifically:  “Base Grammatical Units”.

• Passive  —  [DG]  The Adjective “Passive” — alone — is not a “Grammatical Term”.  However it is used to refer a Sentence that is in the “Passive Form”.

• Passive Form  —  [DG]  The Term “Passive Form” is used to refer to the form that a Sentence is in.  In a “Passive Sentence” — or when the Sentence is in the “Passive Form” — the focus of the Sentence is on the action of the Verb, itself — and NOT on the Subject which is “doing” or has “done” the action.  (Which actually seems opposite to logic, but…)

This is as opposed to an “Active Sentence” — or when the Sentence is in the “Active Form” — where-in the focus of the Sentence is on the one who is DOING the action of the Verb.  (Which also seems a bit illogical.)

Active Form:  “The Teacher explained the Grammatical Term very well.”

Passive Form:  “The Grammatical Term was explained very well.”

• Passive Sentence  —  [DG]  The Term “Passive Sentence” is simply used to refer to a Sentence that in the “Passive Form”

• Passive Voice  —  [GL & OB]  Although this is a common Term in Traditional Grammar — the name itself is Obtuse & Stupid because it has NOTHING to do with the “voice”, and does NOT help you to comprehend what it means.  The “Passive Voice” is their Term to say that a Sentence is in the “Passive Form”. — which is much more clear and makes more logical sense than using the Word “Voice”.

• Past  —  [NG]  The Term “Past” — alone — is not a Grammatical Term, but is used in reference to Verb Tense.  So any of the different forms of Past-Tense:  Past or Past-Simple (same thing), Past-Continuous, Past-Perfect, & Past-Perfect Continuous — (the Word “Tense” is often omitted as it is known that that is what is being referenced.)

• Past-Continuous  —  [PG]  The Term “Past-Continuous” is used to refer to a Past Tense form of the Verb that is used to speak about something which started and finished in the past.

The Past-Perfect is formed by adding “was” or “were” + The Present-Participle of the Verb.

Examples:

“The student was skeptical about taking A TOEFL Preparation Course, so he was trying to prepare on his own.  But once he learned more about The TOEFL Exam, he realized that it would be almost impossible to be successful without A Proper TOEFL Preparation Course.”  🙂

“Another student thought that, because he had been speaking English for years, that his English skills were good enough, so that he didn’t need to prepare for The TOEFL Exam.  He was later seen crying in the bathroom when he realized that the he was a fool for not Properly Preparing For The Exam.”  🙁

• Past-Perfect  —  [PG]  The Term “Past-Perfect” is used to refer to a Past Tense form of the Verb and is used to speak about something which started and finished at some point in the past BEFORE some other point in the past or situation in the past which is mentioned.

The Past-Perfect is formed by adding “had” + The Past-Participle of the Verb.

Examples:

“One student had studied very hard on The TOEFL Exam, but because he did not take A Proper TOEFL Preparation Course, he still received a low score”

“Another student had thought that he could prepare on his own.  But because he himself was not a TOEFL Expert, he did not realize that the material he was studying was a complete waste of time.  If he had prepared with The TOEFL Excellence Training System, he would have achieved the score he needed.”

• Past-Perfect Continuous  —  [PG]  The Term “Past-Perfect Continuous” is used to refer to the Past Tense form of the Verb and is used to speak about something which started at some point in the past BEFORE some other point in the past or situation in the past which is mentioned.  That action may have continued beyond that point, or may have stopped at that point.

It is often used to say what was happening right before some event, which was interrupted.  Or to give a reason for the condition or state of being in some event or point of time in the past when some other thing happened.

The Past-Perfect Continuous is formed by adding “had” + “been” + The Present-Participle of the Verb.

Examples:

“I had been practicing past questions from The TOEFL Exam when I received an email from The Teacher at TOEFL Excellence.”  —  The action may, and probably will continue

“He explained to me why I had been wasting my time & energy by practicing with past questions, and should check out TOEFL Excellence.”  —  The action was interrupted and was stopped

• Past-Perfect Progressive  —  [PG]  The Term “Past-Perfect Progressive” is just another name for The Past-Perfect Continuous Verb Tense which is more-commonly used in European English.

• Past-Participle  —  [PG]  The Term “Past-Participle” is used to refer to the form of the Verb when is usually Conjugated with The “-ed” Suffix with “Regular Verbs”, but other forms for “Irregular Verbs”.

Examples:  “felt”, “taught”, “learned”, “acted”

The reason it is called “Participle” is because it is an action that someone “Participated” in — in the Past Time.

• Past-Progressive  —  [PG]  The Term “Past-Progressive” is just another name for The Past-Continuous Verb Tense which is more-commonly used in European English.

• Past-Simple  —  [PG]  The Term “Past-Simple” is used to refer to the Past-Tense form of the Verb and is used to speak about something which happened in the past, and is finished

The Past-Simple Tense is formed by adding The “-ed” Suffix to the end of “Regular Verbs”, or with the specific change of spelling for “Irregular Verbs”.

Examples: 

“I learned English from The Teacher at GiveMeSomeEnglish!!!”  — Regular

“The teacher taught me all about English in a way that I could easily comprehend” — Irregular

• Past-Tense  —  [PG]  The Term “Past-Tense” — is used to refer to the form (tense) of the Verb in a Sentence.  There are four different forms of the Past-Tense:  Past-Simple, Past-Continuous, Past-Perfect, & Past-Perfect Continuous.

• Perfect Aspect  —  [DG]  The Term “Perfect Aspect” is used to refer to the topic of Verbs being in any of the “Perfect” forms.  The “Perfect” Verb forms are:  Past-Perfect, Past-Perfect Continuous, Present-Perfect, Present-Perfect Continuous, Future-Perfect, Future-Perfect Continuous.

• Performative Verb  —  [DG]  The Term “Performative Verb” is used to refer to an action of the Verb is actually the speaking of the Sentence itself.

Examples:

“I now pronounce you ‘Man & Wife'”

“I sentence you to death by hanging”

“I Quit!”

In all the examples above, the action of the Verb is completed by the speaking of the Sentence.  This is why — in court — they refer to the speaking of what the punishment will be as the “Sentencing”.

• Period  —  [PG]  The Term “Period” is used to refer to the second-most common Grammatical Element of Punctuation.  The “Period” is the American-English & Common Tongue Term for the Symbol of Punctuation that is used to end a Sentence. [ . ]

In British-English, the Period is referred to as a “Full Stop”.

• Personal Pronoun  —  [PG & OB]  The Term “Personal Pronoun” is used to a specific “Person” or Thing.  This — of course is what ALL Pronouns do.  But the difference is:  Personal Pronouns are all Pronouns EXCEPT Demonstrative Pronouns, or Interrogative Pronouns.

The Personal Pronouns Are:  I, Me, My, Mine, Myself — You, Your, Yours, Yourself — He, Him, His, Himself — She, Her, Hers, Herself — It, It’s Itself — We, Us, Our, Ours, Ourselves — They, Them, Their, Theirs, Themselves

(the Possessive Pronoun“It’s”[hyphenated] is not recognized in Traditional Grammar.  Instead, it is considered to be the Contraction of “it is” — which is illogical & stupid.  “It’s” as a Possessive Pronoun and NOT a Contraction IS correctly recognized in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue)

The Demonstrative Pronouns Are:  This, That, These, Those

The Interrogative Pronouns Are:  Who, Whom, Whoever, Which, Whichever, What, Whatever

• Phantom Letter Sound  —  [DG]  This a Term that was created by C. James Cote (“The Teacher” from GiveMeSomeEnglish!!!) to describe the phenomenon which is created simply through the natural Pronunciation of various Letter Combinations which produce the sound of a Letter which is not present.

The most common Phantom Sounds are the sound of The Consonant Letter Y which can be heard in many transitions from one Vowel sound to the next — Or the sound of The Letter W which can be heard in many Words.

Examples:  the Pronoun “Our” has a “Phantom W” in-between “The Letter U” & “The Letter R”  —  “AH-w’r”.

And the Word “Aviation” has a “Phantom Consonant Letter Y” in-between “The Letter I” and “The Letter A”  — “ay-vee-YAY-shihn”.

• Phantom-Schwa  —  [DG]  This a Term that was created by C. James Cote (“The Teacher” from GiveMeSomeEnglish!!!) to describe a one of The THREE different pronunciations of “The Schwa Sound”.

The “Phantom-Schwa” is distinct from the “I-Schwa”, the “U-Schwa”, & the “TRUE-Schwa” because it represents a sound which should not be there according to the spelling of the Word.  But is obviously there in the pronouncing of the Word.

The “Phantom-Schwa” always sounds like the “TRUE-Schwa”, and occurs mostly between the letters “b” & “l” when they are side-by-side in a Word.  But can also occur in other Letter combinations.  The main reason it is called a “Phantom” Schwa is because there is no Vowel in that part of the Word where The Schwa-Sound is pronounced.  It is simply a product of the transition from one Consonant sound to the next.

• Phoneme  —  [DG]  The Term “Phoneme” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Linguistic Term which is used to a single individual sound in a Language.

• Phonetic Alphabet  —  [DG]  The Term “Phonetic Alphabet” is used to refer to the symbols of The International Phonetic Alphabet — which are used to represent the sounds of the Languages & Dialects of The World.

• Phonetic Spelling  —  [DG]  The Term “Phonetic Spelling” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is Grammatical Lingo to refer to Spelling a Word in the way that it is pronounced when it is spoken.  However — it would logically follow that the Spelling would be with the symbols of The International Phonetic Alphabet — which would be true.  But when people refer to a Word being “Spelled Phonetically” — it is usually NOT Spelled with the symbols of The International Phonetic Alphabet — but instead, Spelling “Phonetically”, using the Letters of The Alphabet.

For Example:  The Word Wednesday

— wɛnʒ.de  (using the symbols of The International Phonetic Alphabet)

— wehnz-day  (using the Letters of The Alphabet)

• Phonetic Symbol  —  [DG]  The Term “Phonetic Symbol” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Linguistic Term used to refer to the symbols of The International Phonetic Alphabet.

• Phonetics  —  [DG]  The Term “Phonetics” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Linguistic Term used to refer to the study of the sounds of human speech, and the way that they are:  Created Physiologically;  Received Auditorily;  Perceived Neurologically;  as-well-as how those sounds are represented through specific written symbols — The Phonetic Alphabet.

• Phrasal  —  [GL]  The Term “Phrasal” is not a proper Grammatical Term.  This is because the Word “Phrasal” is an Adjective.  However — it is often used to broadly refer to any of the Grammatical Units in their “Phrasal-Form”:  Phrasal-Adjective, Phrasal-Adverb, Phrasal-Conjunction, Phrasal-Noun, Phrasal-Number, Phrasal-Preposition, Phrasal-Pronoun, Phrasal-Verb — Making them Complex Grammatical Units.

“Phrasals” (any of the Phrasal-Forms above) are different than the “Phrase” forms.  The “Phrase-Form” is any Phrase that Functions As one of the Grammatical Units.  Where-as — the “Phrasal-Form” is a Compound Word — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — that IS a Complex Grammatical Unit.  In The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — “Phrasals” are USUALLY Hyphenated.  In Traditional Grammar — there is no distinction between the  “Phrasal” and the “Phrase” form.

– Phrase:  “The Grammar Of The Common Tongue” = a full Phrase which includes an Article and a Preposition acting as an Conjunction

– Phrasal:  [not Hyphenated]  “Traditional Grammar” = an Adjective & Noun which acts as one singular unit

– Phrasal:  [Hyphenated]  “Dumb-Ass” = an Adjective & Noun which acts as one singular unit

As you may have noticed — many of the Terms in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue are “Phrasals”.  Or more correctly — they are Terms which are in “Phrasal-Form”

• Phrasal-Adjective  —  [DG]  The Term “Phrasal-Adjective” does not exist in Traditional Grammar.  But in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — it is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to a Compound Word or Term — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — which Functions As an Adjective.

Phrasal-Adjectives are usually Hyphenated to indicate that it is one Term and the constituent Words are not acting on their own, but as a Complex Grammatical Unit.

Examples:  “Even-More”, “Far-Beyond”, “No-Longer”, “Long-Ago”, “Far-Away”, etc..

• Phrasal-Adverb  —  [DG]  The Term “Phrasal-Adverb” does not exist in Traditional Grammar.  But in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — it is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to a Compound Word or Term — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — which Functions As an Adverb.

Phrasal-Adjectives are usually Hyphenated to indicate that it is one Term and the constituent Words are not acting on their own, but as a Complex Grammatical Unit.

Examples:  “Most-Assuredly”, “Most-Completely”, “Not Remotely”, etc..

• Phrasal-Conjunction  —  [DG]  The Term “Phrasal-Conjunction” does not exist in Traditional Grammar.  But in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — it is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to a Compound Word or Term — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — which Functions As a Conjunction.

Phrasal-Conjunctions are usually Hyphenated to indicate that it is one Term and the constituent Words are not acting on their own, but as a Complex Grammatical Unit.

Examples:  “That-Being-Said”, “In-Order-To”, “Nevertheless”, “Albeit”, “As-A-Result”, etc..

• Phrasal-Form  —  [PG]  The Term “Phrasal-Form” is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to when a Grammatical Unit (wrongly referred to as one of the “Parts Of Speech” or “Word Classes” in Traditional Grammar) is in the form of a “Phrasal”.  (This is different than the “Phrase-Form”.)

All “Phrasal-Forms” are different than the “Phrase-Forms”.  The “Phrase-Form” is any Phrase that Functions As one of the Grammatical Units.  Where-as — the “Phrasal-Form” is a Compound Word — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — that is a Complex Grammatical Unit.  In The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — “Phrasals” are USUALLY Hyphenated.  In Traditional Grammar — there is no distinction between the  “Phrasal” and the “Phrase” form.

– Phrase:  “The Grammar Of The Common Tongue” = a full Phrase which includes an Article and a Preposition acting as an Conjunction

– Phrasal:  [not Hyphenated]  “Traditional Grammar” = an Adjective & Noun which acts as one singular unit

– Phrasal:  [Hyphenated]  “Dumb-Ass” = an Adjective & Noun which acts as one singular unit

As you may have noticed — many of the Terms in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue are Terms which are in “Phrasal-Form”.

• Phrasal-Noun  —  [DG]  The Term “Phrasal-Noun” does not exist in Traditional Grammar.  But in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — it is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to a Compound Word or Term — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — which Functions As a Noun.

Phrasal-Nouns are usually Hyphenated to indicate that it is one Term and the constituent Words are not acting on their own, but as a Complex Grammatical Device.

Examples:  “Dumb-Ass”, “Dip-Shit”, “River-Rat”, “Boom-Stick”, “Swamp-Creature”, etc..

• Phrasal-Number  —  [DG]  The Term “Phrasal-Number” does not exist in Traditional Grammar.  But in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — it is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to a Compound Word or Term which represents a Number or Numerical Amount — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — and which Functions As a Number or Numerical Amount

Phrasal-Numbers are usually Hyphenated to indicate that it is one Term and the constituent Words are not acting on their own, but as a Complex Grammatical Unit.

Examples:  “Double-Batch”, “Twice-As-Many”, “Half-As-Much”, “1 Less”, “10x”, etc..

• Phrasal-Preposition  —  [DG]  The Term “Phrasal-Preposition” does not exist in Traditional Grammar.  But in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — it is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to a Compound Word or Term — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — which Functions As a Preposition

Phrasal-Prepositions are usually Hyphenated to indicate that it is one Term and the constituent Words are not acting on their own, but as a Complex Grammatical Unit.

Examples:  “Up-Above”, “In-Between”, “With-In”, “Around-About”, “There-About”, etc..

• Phrasal-Pronoun  —  [DG]  The Term “Phrasal-Pronoun” does not exist in Traditional Grammar.  But in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — it is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to a Compound Word or Term — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — which Functions As a Pronoun.

Examples:  “One Another” & “Each Other”

• Phrasal-Verb  —  [DG]  The Term “Phrasal-Verb” is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to a Compound Word or Term — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — which Functions As A Verb.

Examples:  (to) “Beat (someone) Up”, (to) “Run (something) Down”, (to) “Hold On”, (to) “Break Down”, etc..

• Phrase  —  [PG]  The Term “Phrase” is used in to refer to any combination of Words that work-together as a single structure.

In Traditional Grammar it is said that a Phrase can be anything from an full Sentence (which is true) — to a single Word (which does not make sense).  If it is a single Word and acts as some sort of “Phrase” (colloquially meaning — something which people say which might not have the exact same meaning as the actual Word itself) — then it is not a Phrase — it is a Slang Term (usually Metaphorical in nature).

• Phrase-Form  —  [PG]  The Term “Phrase-Form” is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to when a Grammatical Unit (wrongly referred to as one of the “Parts Of Speech” or “Word Classes” in Traditional Grammar) is in the form of a “Phrase”.

All “Phrase-Forms” are different than the “Phrasal-Forms”.  The “Phrase-Form” is any Phrase that Functions As one of the Grammatical Units.  Where-as — the “Phrasal-Form” is a Compound Word — usually only made-up of two Words (but can be more) — that is a Complex Grammatical Unit.  In The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — “Phrasals” are USUALLY Hyphenated.  In Traditional Grammar — there is no distinction between the  “Phrasal” and the “Phrase” form.

– Phrase:  “The Grammar Of The Common Tongue” = a full Phrase which includes an Article and a Preposition acting as an Conjunction

– Phrasal:  [not Hyphenated]  “Traditional Grammar” = an Adjective & Noun which acts as one singular Term

– Phrasal:  [Hyphenated]  “Dumb-Ass” = an Adjective & Noun which acts as one singular but Complex Unit

As you may have noticed — many of the Terms in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue are Terms which are in “Phrasal-Form”.

• Pidgin  —  [NG]  The Term “Pidgin” — alone — is not a Grammatical Term, and the way that it is defined as a Noun is almost never used as one.  It is almost always used as an Adjective to describe a certain type of Dialect which is made-up of the combination of two or more other Languages, and is NOT the standard version of either.  There is no Grammatical “Rules” or “Regulations” for a Pidgin Language because they are all created & perpetuated by classes of people who are highly un-educated.

The most known form of Pidgin English is that which is spoken in Louisiana — especially New Orleans — and is part of the Bayou culture.  It is a mix of English & French.

• Play On Words  —  [NG]  The Term “Play On Words” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Lexical Term for any sort of Expression which uses some clever way of “Playing” with Words by adjusting them in some clever way.  This can be done in MULTIPLE different ways.  So the term “Play On Words” is a very broad Term which refers to all of them.

• Plosive  —  [DG]  The Term “Plosive” is used to refer to certain Consonant Sounds which have an effect of “exploding” out of the mouth, because the sound is “stopped before it comes out — and then release with built-up pressure.

The Plosive Consonant Sounds are those made by the Letters:  B, C (hard), D (regular & flap), G (hard), K, P, T (regular & flap), and the Glottal Stop.

• Plural  —  [DG]  The Term “Plural” is used in-reference to Nouns of-which there are more than one.  So, if one were to say that there was more than on “Car”.  Then we would put that Word in it’s “Plural Form” by adding the Letter “-s” or “-es” Suffix to the end of the Word:  “Cars”.  Then we would say the word “Cars” is “Plural” or in it’s “Plural Form”.

The Terms “Plural Form” and “Plural Noun” are both “Prescriptive Grammar”.  But the use of the Word “Plural”, to talk ABOUT Grammar (as I have done in the first Paragraph above) is “Descriptive Grammar”.

• Plural Form  —  [PG]  The Term “Plural Form” simply refers to the form of a Noun when it is representing more than one of whatever the it represents.  This is usually done by adding an “-s” or “-es” Suffix to the Word — but there are also Nouns which have “Irregular Plural-Form” which use a different spelling for the Plural Form.

The Above Is True In Both Traditional Grammar & The Grammar Of The Common Tongue

• Plural Noun  —  [PG]  The Term “Plural Noun” is used to refer to any Noun which is in it’s “Plural Form” — thus, representing more than one of whatever thing the Noun represents.

• Poetry  —  [NG]  The Term “Poetry” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Literary Term used to refer to a type of artistic writing that utilized Rhyme & Rhythm.

Rose are Red
Violets are Blue
Traditional Grammar Sucks
and
GiveMeSomeEnglish!!! clearly shows this to you!

😀

(not my best work, but it get’s the job done.)

• Polysemy  —  [NG & OB]  The Term “Polysemy” is not necessarily a Grammatical Term.  It is simply a Semantic Term which is used to describe a Word that has more than one meaning.

And because of the fact that there is such a huge difference between Meaning & Usage — and the people who write the modern dictionaries chose to follow the trends of Common Usage rather than Etymology…  Almost EVERY Word is a Polysemy.  There-fore — this Term is Useless, Stupid & Obtuse.

Knowing this Term will not help you — in any way — to Comprehend or Communicate in English.

• Polysyllabic  —  [NG & OB]  The Term “Polysyllabic” is not necessarily a Grammatical Term.  It is simply a Adjective which is used to describe a Word as having “More Than One Syllable“.

Knowing this Term will not help you — in any way — to Comprehend or Communicate in English.

• Portmanteau Word  —  [NG]  The Term “Portmanteau Word” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Linguistic Term which is used to refer to Word were created by combing two or more other Words.

For Example:

— Web Log ⇒ Blog

— Smoke + Fog ⇒ Smog  (which is not really what smog is, but that is irrelevant)

— Clam + Tomato ⇒ Clamato  (Yes, that is actually what it is.  Clam “juice” and Tomato juice.  But it makes a delicious Bloody Mary)  😉

• Possessive Adjective  —  [DG & OB]  The Term “Possessive Adjective” is an Stupid & Obtuse Term because something can only be “Possessed” by a Person or Entity, which are represented by Pronouns or Nouns with the ‘s Suffix [Apostrophe + s]

• Possessive Case  —  [DG & OB]  The Term “Possessive Case” is used to refer to a Noun which is in the “Possessive” form.  This is done by adding an ‘s [Apostrophe + S] ending to the end of the Noun.

• Possessive Form  —  [DG]  The Term “Possessive Form” is a Grammatical Term in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue —  which is used to refer to a Noun which is in the “Possessive” form.  This is done by adding an ‘s [Apostrophe + S] ending to the end of the Noun.

• Possessive Noun  —  [DG & OB]  The Term “Possessive Noun” is used to refer to a Noun which is in the “Possessive” form.  This is done by adding an ‘s [Apostrophe + S] ending to the end of the Noun.

However — this Term is rather Obtuse, because this is not a separate kind of Noun, as the Name of this Term implies.  There is also the Term “Possessive Case” — which refers to exactly the same thing.  But why the use of the Word “Case”?  What we are referring to is a “Form” of the Noun.

That is why — in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — we use the Term “Possessive Noun Form”, or simply “Possessive Form” (because only Nouns can be “Possessive”, so the use of the Word Noun, with-in the Term, is Redundant.)

• Possessive Pronoun  —  [DG]  The Term “Possessive Pronoun” is used to refer to the Pronouns that describe the ownership of the Noun that it is referring-to.

The Possessive Pronouns Are:  Our, Their, My, Your, His, Hers, It’s

(the Possessive Pronoun“It’s”[hyphenated] is not recognized in Traditional Grammar.  Instead, it is considered to be the Contraction of “it is” — which is illogical & stupid.  “It’s” as a Possessive Pronoun and NOT a Contraction IS correctly recognized in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue)

• Post-Modifier  —  [OB]  First of all — The Term “Modifier” is already Stupid & Obtuse, and so broadly refers to so many different things in Traditional Grammar that it is not even helpful — in any way — when it comes to actually Comprehending & Communicating in English that it was one of the first Grammatical Terms in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue to be eliminated and classified as Grammatical Dross.

And the Term “Post-Modifier” can now join it’s Root.  Because a “Post-Modifier” is literally ANY type of Modifier that comes AFTER whatever it is Modifying…  Useless.

• Post-Positive Adjective  —  [OB]  The Term “Post-Positive Adjective” is used to refer to an Adjective that appears AFTER the Noun that it modifies.  This is almost the same thing as a Predicative Adjective — However, a Post-Positive Adjective can also be used to modify Nouns which are not the Subject of the Sentence and therefore are not “Predicative”.

However — because of the illogical use of the Word “Positive” the Term is slightly Obtuse.  However — I have not-yet thought of a better Term for The Grammar Of The Common Tongue.

• Pre-Modifier  —  [OB]  First of all — The Term “Modifier” is already Stupid & Obtuse, and so broadly refers to so many different things in Traditional Grammar that it is not even helpful — in any way — when it comes to actually Comprehending & Communicating in English that it was one of the first Grammatical Terms in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue to be eliminated and classified as Grammatical Dross.

And the Term “Pre-Modifier” can now join it’s Root.  Because a “Pre-Modifier” is literally ANY type of Modifier that comes BEFORE whatever it is Modifying…  Useless.

• Predicate  —  [PG]  The Term “Predicate” is used to refer to — the part of a Sentence or Clause which states any characteristic information about The Subject of the Sentence.

In the Sentence: “TOEFL Excellence is The Greatest TOEFL Preparation System In The Universe” — “TOEFL Excellence“ is the Subject.  “…is The Greatest TOEFL Preparation System In The Universe.”  —  is the Predicate.

The Predicate is what gives the information about the Subject.

• Predicative Adjective  —  [DG]  The Term “Predicative Adjective” is used to refer to when an Adjective that is part of the “Predicate” of a Sentence;  it comes AFTER The Subject that it describes.  This is as opposed to an Attributive Adjective which comes BEFORE The Subject and is in the “Standard” placement for an Adjective.

For Example:

The Best TOEFL Preparation On-Line  —  Attributive Adjective

The On-line TOEFL Preparation That Is The Best  —  Predicative Adjective

• Predicative Nominator  —  [DG & OB]  The Term “Predicative Nominator” — which is wrongly called a “Predicate Nominative” in Traditional Grammar — is used to refer to a Noun which is in the “Predicate” of a Sentence and describes or “Names” (“Nominative”) The Subject.

For Example:  In The Sentence:  “GiveMeSomeEnglish!!! Is The Freakin’ Bomb, Yo!”…

“…The Freakin’ Bomb” is a Noun-Phrase which is The Predicative Nominative, because is says what GiveMeSomeEnglish!!! Is.

The name of this Term was changed by C. James Cote (“The Teacher” from GiveMeSomeEnglish!!! & TOEFL Excellence) but that is only because the Traditional Grammar Term of “Predicate Nominative” is actually GRAMMATICALLY WRONG!!!.

However — even though the name has been changed to make it Grammatically correct — The actual concept of this “Grammatical Device” is completely Obtuse.  It will not help you to comprehend or communicate in English.  The only way that it would be helpful to you is if it was on an exam that you were taking, and you needed to know what it was.

• Prefix  —  [PG]  The Term “Prefix” is used to refer to a Complex Grammatical Element which is “Affixed” to the beginning (“pre-“) of a Word or sometimes even another Prefix (if there are more than one Prefixes attached to the Root-Word).  Prefixes usually have a Prepositional or Adverbial function in changing the meaning of the Root-Word.

For Example:  The Term “Prefix” — itself — has a Prefix.  The Root-Word “Fix” means:  (to) Attach to (something).  The Prefix “Pre-“ means:  Before.  So the Term Prefix means:  That which is attached-to or “affixed” BEFORE the Root-Word.

• Preposition —  [PG]  The Term “Preposition” is used to refer to Words which indicate “Placement” or “Position” of some thing.  This “Place” or “Position” typically refers to things such as physical location, or location in time.  It can also show direction, or from where something is coming or to where something is going.

One way to think about Prepositions, is that they shows you — before (“pre-“) you get the rest of the information about something — what (“-postion”) that thing is in, is from, or will be.

In Traditional Grammar — A Preposition is one of the “Parts Of Speech” or “Word Classes”

In The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — Prepositions are one of the Base Grammatical Units.

• Prepositional-Phrase —  [DG]  The Term “Prepositional-Phrase” is used to refer to a Phrase which Functions As a Preposition in a Sentence.

For Example:  In the Sentence:  “Before you register for your TOEFL Exam, you should prepare with The TOEFL Excellence Training System“  —  “Before you register…” is a Prepositional Phase

• Prescriptive Grammar —  [DG]  The Term “Prescriptive Grammar” is used to refer to the Aspect Of Grammar which covers the “Regulations Of Grammar” — (as opposed to “The Rules Of Grammar”).

So, all that is covered in “Prescriptive Grammar” are those things which MUST be done in the “Prescriptive” way — or-else the intended message of communication will completely break down — or will at the very least, the message will be skewed in meaning.

• Present  —  [NG]  The Term “Present” — by itself — is not a Grammatical Term, but is used in reference to Verb Tense.  So any of the different forms of Present-Tense:  Present-Simple, Present-Continuous, Present-Perfect, & Present-Perfect Continuous — (when describing them, the Word “Tense” is often omitted as it is known that that is what is being referenced.)

• Present-Continuous  —  [PG]  The Term “Present-Continuous” is used to refer to the Present-Tense when the Verb is Conjugated with The “-ing” Suffix.

Examples:  “I am feeling happy”, I am teaching”, “You are learning”, “You are acting very smart for getting your grammar knowledge here”

The Present-Continuous Tense is used to talk about actions which are happening in the Present Time.

• Present-Participle  —  [PG]  The Term “Present-Participle” is used to refer to the form of the Verb when is Conjugated with The “-ing” Suffix.

Examples:  “feeling”, “teaching”, “learning”, “acting”

The reason it is called “Participle” is because it is an action that someone is “Participating” in — in the Present Time.

• Present-Perfect  —  [PG]  The Term “Present-Perfect” is used to refer to the when the Verb is in the Past-Participle form, with addition of the Auxiliary Verbs “Have” or “Has”.

Examples:  “I have been happy” — “I have taught” — “You have learned” — “You have been very smart for getting your grammar knowledge here”

The Present-Perfect Tense is used to talk about actions or States Of Being which started in the Past;  Which may or may not still be true (may or may not be completed);  But which have a relevance or an effect on the Present Time.  In many cases, it does not matter when the action happened;  If the State is still true;  Or if the action has finished — because the focus in on the fact that it has an effect on the Present Time or Present State.

For Example:  “I have taught” means that is happened at some point in the past (actually thousands of times).  It does not matter when that was or even that “I still teach” — because it is an experience that I have had, and I can not “un-do” that fact.  There-fore — it will ALWAYS have an effect on The Present Time.  It is called “Perfect” because it is “For A Fact”.

• Present-Perfect Continuous  —  [PG]  The Term “Present-Perfect Continuous” is used to refer to when the Verb is in the Continuous form, with addition of the Auxiliary Verbs “Have” or “Has”.

Examples:  “I have been feeling very happy” — “I have been teaching for a long time” — “You have been learning from me” — “You have been acting very smart for getting your grammar knowledge here”

The Present-Perfect Continuous Tense is used to talk about actions or States Of Being which started in the Past;  Which are still true or still happening;  Which may or may not continue into the Future;  And which have an effect on the Present Time or Present State.

For Example:  “I have been teaching for a long time” means that is started happening at some point in the Past.  It does not matter when that was, or if it will still continue into the Future or not.  But it has continued up until The Present Time.  It is called “Perfect” because it is “For A Fact”.

• Present-Perfect Progressive  —  [PG]  The Term “Present-Perfect Progressive” is the European English version of the Term Present-Perfect Continuous.

• Present-Progressive  —  [PG]  The Term “Present-Progressive” is the European English version of the Term Present-Continuous.

• Present-Simple  —  [PG]  The Term “Present-Simple” is used to refer to the Present-Tense in it’s base form.

Examples:  “I am happy.”, I am a Teacher.”, “You are my student.”, “You are smart for getting your grammar knowledge here.”

The Present-Simple Tense is used to talk about things which are a fact, (or at least stated as fact) in the Present Time.

• Present-Tense  —  [PG]  The Term “Present-Tense” is used to refer to one of the three times that Verb-Tenses can be referring to:  Past, Present, and Future.

There are four different forms of Present-Tense:  Present-Simple, Present-Continuous, Present-Perfect, & Present-Perfect-Continuous — (when describing them, the word “tense” is often omitted as it is known that that is what is being referenced.)

• Progressive Aspect  —  [OB & NG]  The Term “Progressive Aspect” is a Grammatical Term in Traditional Grammar, and can roughly be explained as “Referring to the Progressive Tenses“ of Verbs (“Progressive” being just a different way of saying “Continuous”).

But considering that the people who are supposedly “Grammar Experts” can not even adequately describe what the hell a “Progressive Aspect” IS — and especially considering that you could become the most perfect English speaker and writer without every even knowing that there was such a Term as “Progressive Aspect” — This proves that this particular Term is COMPLETELY Useless & Obtuse.

(If you do not believe me — just go to The Wikipedia Page for “Progressive Aspect” and tell me what the hell that is supposed to mean.  There is even a warning at the top of the page that has been there since 2016, that the page makes no sense.)

• Progressive Tenses  —  [DG]  The Term “Progressive Tenses” is simply used to refer broadly to all of the Progressive, or “Continuous” Tenses.  These are the Verb Tenses that refer to action that is (or was) “Happening” — and are Conjugated with The “-ing” suffix.

In Traditional Grammar — the Term “Progressive” — to refer to the Verb Tenses is more common in European English.  In American English the Term “Continuous” is more common.  In The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — the Term “Continuous” is used because it is more logical than “Progressive”.  This is because the Word “Progressive” is ambiguous.  And there can be “Continuing” action which is not “Progressive” — according to the most-common meaning of the Word “Progressive”.

• Pronoun  —  [PG]  The Term “Pronoun” is used to represent Words that refers to another Noun — either with-in the same Sentence, another in another Sentence.  Or — a Pronoun can also refer to a Noun which is not in any of the surrounding Sentences, but which is already somehow known through the context of speech or writing.

Examples:  “I”, “Me”, “My”, “Myself” — “You”, “Your”, “Yourself” — “He”, “Him”, “Himself” — “She”, “Her”, “Herself” — “It”, “It’s”, “Itself” — “They”, “Them”, “Their”, “Themselves” — “We”, “Us”, “Our”, “Ourselves”

The stupid shit that young and crazy people on Tik-Tok are saying about their “Preferred Pronouns” which are made-up Words that have no logical sense are NOT actual Pronouns.  They are just children playing “make believe”.  And when they say that they are NOT, then they are simply proving that they are stupid and probably insane.

The Above Is True In Both Traditional Grammar & The Grammar Of The Common Tongue.  However — in Traditional Grammar, “It’s” is the contraction for “It Is”.  But in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — the possessive form of “It” is CORRECTLY written as “It’s”.  Contractions are a Colloquialization of Spoken English.  They are not to be used in the written form — except artistically, or when making a direct quote.

• Pronoun-Phrase  —  [PG]  The Term “Pronoun-Phrase” is used to refer to any Phrase that Functions As a Pronoun within a Clause or a Sentence.

• Pronunciation  —  [PG]  The Term “Pronunciation” is used to refer to the way in which a Word is spoken;  the characteristic sounds of the Letters, the combination of Letters, and even the Colloquial way in which certain Words are spoken — regardless of the way it would seem that the Word SHOULD be spoken, based on the Letters, the combination of Letters used.

• Proper Adjective  —  [DG & OB]  The Term “Proper Adjective” is used to refer to an Adjective which turns a Proper Noun into an Adjective:  America ⇒ American  —  “An American Ideology”;  Europe ⇒ European  —  “A European Mind-set”

However — this Term — along with most of the other Terms for the different Types Of Adjectives — is Stupid & Obtuse, because it implies that there is such a thing as an “Improper” Adjective…  Which there is not.

This Term is only here so you can know what is meant by the Term. when it is used in Traditional Grammar.  It will not help you to Comprehend or better-Communicate in English.  The only way that knowing this Term could help is if you were taking a test of English Grammar, and you needed to know what was meant by this Term in Traditional Grammar.

• Proper Name  —  [DG & OB]  The Term “Proper Name” is used to refer to the Name of a Person, Company, Mountain, River, Lake, Ocean, Sea, Country, City, etc..  Because the Term “Proper Name” refers to literally ANYTHING that is “Named” — the Term is Redundant and Obtuse.

So then — why do we make any distinction between a “Proper Name” and simply a “Name”?  This is only because — in the past, and in Traditional Grammar — the Term “Proper Name” was only used to describe “important” things — and not the Name of things which in The Grammar Of The Common Tongue we refer to as “Terms”.

A “Term” is a “Name” for something which in Traditional Grammar would NOT be considered a “Proper Name”.  For example:  ALL Grammatical Terms are simply “Names” for those things.  So in Traditional Grammar — those Terms would not be considered “Proper Names”.  In The Grammar Of The Common Tongue — we eliminate any confusion in this matter by correctly referring to them as “Terms”.  And thus — the Term “Proper Name” is no-longer needed.

• Proper Noun  —  [DG]  The Term “Proper Noun” is used to refer to a Noun which names a particular:  Person, Place, Organization, or Event — rather than any of those things abstractly.  So not “Man”, but “Bob”;  Not “Country”, but “The United States Of America”;  Not “English Language School”, but “GiveMeSomeEnglish!!!“;  and not “Day”, but “Christmas”.

The definition of the Term also includes:  Ship, Animal, and any other Individual Entity.  We include Ships because it has been the tradition of sailors to name their boats to give them an Identity;  Animals, because we have pets that we give names to because we recognize them as individual entities.  And the reason for adding “Individual Entities” to the definition is to include “Gods, Goddesses, Spirits, Demons, Mythological personages, and Fictional Characters.

• Prose  —  [NG]  The Term “Prose” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Term which is used to refer to a literary style which is not meant to be Poetry.  According to the definition of this Term — Basically, anything which is not Poetry is Prose.

• Protasis  —  [DG & OB]  The Term “Protasis” is a Grammatical Term which is used to refer to the part of a Conditional Sentence which tells what will or may happen based on the condition.

For Example:  In the Sentence:  “If I have to explain another one of these USELESS Grammatical Terms, I think my head is going to explode!”  —  “…my head is going to explode” is the “Protasis”

This Term is — however — completely useless to anyone besides those who need to take an exam where-in “Protasis” is the subject of one of the questions.  Knowing this Term will not, in any way, help you to Learn or Communicate better in English.  That is why it is Stupid & Obtuse, and therefore Grammatical Dross.

• Proverb  —  [NG]  The Term “Proverb” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Lexical Term used to refer to a Phrase or Statement which is used to express some basic truth that can be applied to various situations.  They are often used to convey Wisdom.

• Pun  —  [NG]  The Term “Pun” is not a Grammatical Term.  It is a Lexical Term which is used for a type of Word Play which — according to the definition — is when “similar definitions or sounds of two words or phrases are used” – Or – “when two different definitions of two words are deliberately confused.”

However — this is not how the Term is most commonly used.  The Term “Pun” is almost always and exclusively used in the common Expression “No Pun Intended” — which is used when someone says something which actually an example of “Irony”.

For Example:  In English, we have a Metaphorical Interjection that is:  “You really stepped in it this time”  —  This Phrase is probably referring to when a person steps in a pile of shit left by some animal.  Which, of course is a terrible situation for most people, and is an accident which is of the person’s own making (because they weren’t paying attention.)

So — if a person gets into a situation of their own making which turns out to be a bad situation that they could have avoided if they were paying attention, we say (Metaphorically):  “Boy, you really stepped in it this time!”

Now — if a person gets into a situation in-which they actually DID, literally, (not Metaphorically) “step in” something.  And another person said (slightly Ironically) — “Boy, you really stepped in it this time!” — as a way of being clever (because the person ACTUALLY DID step into something) then that person might follow that up by saying “No Pun Intended.”

All That Being Said — according to the definition of the Term Pun — the way in-which we use the Phrase “No Pun Intended” is actually an example of “Irony”…  not a “Pun”

• Punctuation  —  [PG]  The Term “Punctuation” is used to refer to the the set of Symbols that are used as “Markers” in the written form of the Language — to Regulate the end of Sentences (Statements, Exclamations, & Questions);  Pauses in a Sentence;  The separation of Clauses;  The separation of items in a list;  the indication that a list will follow;  and to include, but distinguish certain information added to a Sentence or a Paragraph.

The Symbols Of Punctuation are one of three sets of Grammatical Elements — along with The Letters Of The Alphabet, and Numbers in Their Symbol Form.