Grammar in EAP
Correct word or form of word
Correct word form
It is very easy to choose the incorrect form of a word. For example, should it be “eat” or “eats”, “understand” or “understanding”, “inform” or “information”, “correct” or “correctly”.
The branch of grammar that studies the structure and form of words is morphology. It contrasts with syntax, the study of word combinations.
Morphology consists of two fields: the study of inflection and the study of word formation.
Inflection
Several classes of word in English have different forms; they inflect.
- Regular verbs have five forms: “begin“, “begins“, “began“, “begun“, “beginning“.
- Some adjectives have three inflected forms: “weak“, “weaker“, “weakest“.
- Nouns typically have three forms: “lady“, “ladies“, “lady’s” and perhaps “ladies’“.
See: Grammar: Morphology
Word Formation
See: Vocabulary: Word Formation & Vocabulary: Affixes & Roots
Try this exercise.