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Alphabetical Order
The Alphabet (twenty-six letters)
A
N
B
O
C
P
D
Q
E
R
F
S
G
T
H
U
I
V
J
W
K
X
L
Y
M
Z
Practically all books containing lists have the words arranged in the order of the
letters of the alphabet:
1. By the first letters of the words.
2. When the first letters are the same, the words are arranged according to the
second letters.
3. When the first two letters are the same, the words are arranged according to the third
letters.
And so on.
Examples:
1. By the first letter:
anchor, bicycle, height, machine, physical, seized, vehicle, yacht.
2. When the first letters are the same:
absence, accurate, aeroplane, ancient, attention, autumn, awkward.
3. When the first two letters are the same:
thatch, their, thimble, though, through, thumb, thyme.
Exercises
on Alphabetical Order
1. Place the following words in alphabetical order:
vegetable, official, judgement, colonel, extremely, necessary, language, immediately.
2. Rearrange the following words in dictionary order:
beginning, brooch, biscuit, business, byre, bough, balance, blossom.
3. Place the following words in alphabetical order:
complaint, cocoa, correct, coffee, condition, coarse, collection, course.
4. Rearrange the following words in dictionary order:
dismissed, disguise, displayed, disaster, district, discovery, disobeyed, disease.
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Apostrophes
The Possessive Case of a Noun is shown by a mark (’) known as an apostrophe.
In Singular nouns it is shown by ’s, e.g. Mary’s bag, the animal’s foot, Keats’s poems,
Burns’s songs. Exception: it may however be shown by the apostrophe only (’) to avoid
awkward-sounding double or treble s endings, e.g. Moses’ anger, Jesus’ words,
Aristophanes’ comedies.
In the Plural it is shown in two ways:
a) By the apostrophe only (’) when the plural ends in -s or -es, e.g. the boys’ books, the
ladies’ coats.
b) By the apostrophe and s (’s) when the plural does not end in s, e.g. the children’s
toys, the men’s hats.
Singular Possessive
the girl’s dress
the lady’s bag
the boy’s pencil
a day’s work
the man’s pipe
the woman’s glove
the child’s clothes
Exercises
Plural Possessive
the girls’ dresses
the ladies’ bags
the boys’ pencils
seven days’ work
the men’s pipes
the women’s gloves
the children’s clothes
on Apostrophes
Correct the following sentences by putting in the apostrophes:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
The boys pencil lay on the floor.
The ladies coats were in the cloakroom.
My cousins hand was badly hurt.
The mens boots were covered with mud.
The childs doll fell into the pond.
I saw that the object was a womans glove.
The register lay on the teachers desk.
He looked very smart in page-boys uniform.
It took several hours hard work to repair the damage.
In the window was a special display of babies clothes.
The childrens books were left in my uncles house.
The maids dress was torn by a neighbours dog.
My fathers wallet was discovered in the thieves den.
A ducks egg is generally cheaper than a hens.
Mr Smiths watch is five minutes slower than Mr Browns.
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Derivations
Suffixes
Suffix
-able, -ible . . . . . . . . . . . .
-ain, -an . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-ance, -ence . . . . . . . . . .
-ant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-el, -et, -ette . . . . . . . . . .
-er, -eer, -ier . . . . . . . . . .
-ess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-fy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-icle, -sel . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-less . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-ling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-ment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-ock. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-oon, -on . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-ory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
-ous. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exercises
Meaning
capable of being . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
one connected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
state of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
one who. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
little . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
one who. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
the female. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
to make . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
little . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
without . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
little . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
state of being . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
little . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
large . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
a place for . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
full of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Examples
movable, edible, incredible
chaplain, publican
repentance, existence
assistant, servant
satchel, locket, cigarette
baker, engineer, furrier
goddess, princess, waitress
glorify, purify, simplify
particle, morsel
careless, guiltless, merciless
codling, gosling, darling
merriment, enjoyment
hillock, bittock
saloon, balloon, flagon
dormitory, factory
famous, glorious, momentous
on Derivations
1. Underline the root parts of the following words and give their meanings:
century, December, factory, manual, navigate, suspend, pedal, export, describe,
tentacles.
2. Underline the prefixes in the following words and give their meanings:
anteroom, bicycle, circumference, contradict, forenoon, international, postscript,
submarine, transport, unknown.
3. Underline the suffixes in the following words and give their meanings:
heiress, cigarette, explorer, simplify, duckling, careless, edible, attendant, decorator,
courageous.
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General Knowledge
In the following list many questions can be answered by one word. Wherever possible,
do so.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
A boy who frightens weaker boys.
A number of soldiers.
The men and women who work on a ship.
Children in a school.
A man who protects sheep.
The low ground between two hills.
A place where pupils are educated.
A ship which travels below the surface of the sea.
A place for storing a car.
A small leaf.
A mammal that can fly.
A field in which fruit trees grow.
An instrument for measuring time.
From what do we make butter?
A man who makes things out of wood.
A fertile place in the desert.
A man who pretends to be good.
A person who is always boasting.
A stream which flows into a river.
A hundred years.
Name an instrument for telling direction.
What are the steps of a ladder called?
Name two spotted animals.
A doctor who performs operations.
What is the front part of a ship called?
Headgear worn by some inhabitants of India.
A place where beer is made.
What is daybreak sometimes termed?
A man who draws and paints.
Fish with the bones taken out.
A shallow crossing in a river.
Two creatures which see well in the dark.
What is the meaning of plume?
Name any American money.
Girl or woman who serves at table.
A person who by desire lives alone.
What do we call the breaking of a bone?
N
NE
NW
E
W
SE
SW
S
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