Semester 2 Exam Study Guide Flashcards

Coordinating Conjunctions

• Coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS): used to connect words, phrases, and clauses.
  • For
  • And
  • Nor
  • But
  • Or
  • Yet
  • So

Simple and Compound Sentences

• Simple Sentences: Consist of one complete subject and one complete predicate.
  • The complete subject names whom or what the sentence is about.
  • The complete predicate tells what the subject does or has; sometimes it describes what the subject is or is like.
• Compound Sentences: Contain two or more connected simple sentences.
  • Each simple sentence in a compound sentence is called a main clause.
• Main Clauses: Has a subject and a predicate/verb and can stand alone as a sentence.
  • If main clauses are connected by "and," "but," or "or," a comma precedes the conjunction.
  • If main clauses are not joined by a conjunction, a semicolon can be used as the connector.

Practice Examples (Simple or Compound)

• Long-distance travel was difficult for early Americans. (Simple)
• In those days, people traveled in stagecoaches and covered wagons. (Simple)
• Long-distance travel was possible, but it was not very fast or comfortable. (Compound)
• Eventually, railroads were built; trackers were laid across the country. (Compound)
• Distant cities were connected, and people could travel between them. (Compound)
• The growth of railroads changed the lives of many Americans. (Simple)
• Americans found trains a pleasant alternative to stagecoaches and wagons. (Simple)
• Railroads were popular for long journeys, and they made short trips easier, too. (Compound)
• Workers moved out of crowded cities, and commuters used trains. (Compound)
• Family members moved across the country, but trains reunited them. (Compound)

Complex Sentences

• Complex Sentences: Has one main clause and one or more subordinate clauses.
  • Subordinate Clauses: A group of words that has a subject and a predicate but does not express a complete thought and cannot stand alone as a sentence.
    • Always combined with a main clause in a sentence.
    • Often start with relative pronouns (who/whom/whose, whoever, which, whichever, what, that) or subordinating conjunctions.
  • Subordinating Conjunctions: Single words used to connect parts of a sentence, such as words or phrases.
    • Examples: after, although, as, because, before, if, since, than, though, unless, until, when, whenever, whereas, wherever.

Practice Examples (Simple or Complex)

• The desert is a place where most animals are not able to live or work. (Complex)
• Camels are useful because they cross the desert easily. (Complex)
• Camels provide necessary transportation in the desert. (Simple)
• Long caravans of camels carry heavy loads across these dry, hot regions. (Simple)
• Camels have double eyelashes, which protect their eyes from the blowing sand. (Complex)
• Its eyelashes also help protect a camel’s eyes from the strong glare of the sun. (Simple)
• People have found that camels can survive sandstorms. (Complex)
• Until the sun sets, camels maintain a 105-degree temperature. (Complex)
• We have learned that the camel’s temperature drops to 93 degrees at night. (Complex)
• Camels survive desert life because they can live with little water. (Complex)
• Scientists have not always understood how a camel could endure a lack of water. (Complex)
• Because they can tolerate desert conditions so well, camels were brought to America in the 1850s for use as pack animals in California and Nevada. (Complex)
• The camels annoyed stagecoach drivers, whose teams of horses often became frightened at the sight of the camels. (Complex)
• Camels were also brought to Australia as pack animals since they could endure arid conditions better than horses. (Complex)
• Although a camel is relatively tall, a rider can easily climb up onto the back of a kneeling camel. (Complex)

Literary Devices

1. Setting: Where and when a story takes place.
2. Character: Person, animal, or creature in a story.
3. Plot: Action and sequence of events.
4. External Conflict: Struggle between two characters, with society, with nature, etc.
5. Internal Conflict: Struggle within a character.
6. First Person Point of View: Speaker uses 'I', 'Me', 'We'; speaker is part of action, but reader only knows what this one character knows and feels.
7. Third Person Limited Point of View: Narrator uses “he, she, they”; describes action like an eye-witness.
8. Third Person Omniscient Point of View: Narrator uses “he, she, they”; narrator knows and sees everything including each character’s thoughts.
9. Theme: Main idea or message of a story.
10. Protagonist: Main character.
11. Antagonist: Character or force that has conflict with the protagonist.
12. Foreshadowing: Clues about what is going to happen.
13. Flashback: Scenes or events that have happened already.
14. Tone: The author’s attitude towards his/her subject.
15. Mood: The feeling a story creates in the reader.
16. Personification: Giving human qualities to an animal, object, or idea.
17. Simile: Comparing two unlike things using like or as.
18. Metaphor: Comparing two similar things without using like or as.
19. Symbol: Object that stands for something greater than itself.
20. Verbal Irony: Saying the opposite of what is meant.
21. Situational Irony: When what happens is the opposite of what the reader expects.
22. Dramatic Irony: The reader knows something a character doesn’t.
23. Round Character: Complex with many sides to their personality; character is well developed by the author so as to be believable; usually a major character.
24. Flat Character: Simple, one-dimensional, can be described using one single word, usually a minor character.
25. Dynamic Character: Undergoes an important inner change (in personality, beliefs, attitude).
26. Static Character: Does NOT undergo any important inner changes throughout the story.

Parts of Speech

Nouns (Underlined)

1. The children laughed at the monkeys in the cage.
2. The Newmans’ vacation was last month.
3. Sheila is going to the skating rink tomorrow.
4. Molly is borrowing my bicycle for the race.
5. After the dance, John is going home.

Verbs (Underlined)

6. The scene was crowded with ambulances and workers.
7. The bright lights of the midway attracted every child in town.
8. Martha could wear her twin sister’s clothes.
9. The writer of the play is a complete genius.
10. Andy removed the magazine from the office.

Pronouns (Underlined)

11. Whom did Christina ask to the dance?
12. She and Jason finished the race at the same time.
13. Jerry was proud of himself for achieving the goal.
14. Ellen fastened her seatbelt before they left.
15. Most of the students rode in the parade.

Adjectives (Underlined)

1. The duck waddled over to the calm pond.
2. The trees in the orchard were full of ripe fruit.
3. We knew from the beginning that the school play was very silly.
4. The politician reluctantly answered the persistent reporters’ many questions.
5. The diplomat handled the delicate situation very well.

Adverbs (Underlined)

6. The soccer team worked swiftly to score another goal.
7. The chef often makes us delicious meals.
8. The porch swing gently moved back and forth in the breeze.
9. The whimpering dog slowly curled up in the corner of the kitchen.
10. The full moon glowed brightly against the midnight sky.

Direct Object, Indirect Object, Predicate Adjective, or Predicate Nominative

• DO = Direct Object
• IO = Indirect Object
• PA = Predicate Adjective
• PN = Predicate Nominative

1. Rumplestiltskin spun straw into gold for the miller's daughter. (DO)
2. The featured appetizer today is fried mushrooms. (PN)
3. The situation appears hopeful. (PA)
4. Lucille cooked Hazel spaghetti. (IO)
5. The weatherman promised us sunshine today. (DO)
6. Roman left him a message. (IO)
7. Everyone felt good about the decision. (PA)
8. You look handsome in your new band uniform. (PA)
9. Some lemons taste especially sour. (PA)
10. Robert threw the dog his ball. (IO)