Some important rules
SOME AND ANY
Rule 1 :- Some is used in the positive sentence while any is used in the negative sentence and interrogative sentence.
EXAMPLES
1. Do you have some money? (use- any)
2. She has not read some novel. (use- any)
3. I shall post you any essays. (use- some)
Rule 2. ‘Any’ should also be used in the affirmative sentence after if.
Example
1. If you need some money to continue your education, I will give you. (use- any)
Rule 3. Some can also be used in question to indicate an offer, request or when expected answer is “yes”.
Examples
1. Will you take some coffee? (offer)
2. Would you give me some books of English? (request)
3. Do you want to buy some novels? (I expect you do)
Rule 4:-
Use of Little, a little and the little-
1. Little means :- not much, hardly any:- It is used in the negative sense.
Examples
1. There is little chance of his selection for this post. (means he is not likely to be selected)
2. He has little money to buy a book.
3. There is little water in the bottle.
2. A little means:- some though not much:- It is used in the positive sense.
Examples
1. There is a little chance of his selection for this post. (he may possibly be selected)
2. A little knowledge of computer is important for everyone.
3. The little means :- not much but all there is –
Example
1. The little knowledge of computer that he had helped him a lot to get a job.
(means the knowledge of computer he possessed was not much; but all that knowledge he had helped him a lot to get a job)
Note-
(i) Little is used for uncountable noun while few is used for countable noun.
(ii) We use singular noun after little and plural noun after few.
Rule 5:-
Use of few, a few and the few
1. Few means not many, hardly any :- It has a negative meaning.
Examples
1. Few people are free from fault.
2. Few men in India can speak ten language.
2. A few means some, opposed to none:- It has positive meaning.
Examples
1. A few men are born great.
2. A few persons get up early in the morning.
3. The few means not many but all there are.
Examples
1. The few friends that I have are very cooperative and helpful.
2. The few clothes that she gifted me were very expensive.
Exercise
1. ………girls can speak queen’s English.
2……….books that I suggested to you were written with a view to competitive exams.
3………..money that you have can not quench my thirst.
4………..food I kept for you had been eaten by your brother.
5…………tact would have saved his life.
6. The police can not investigate the case as he gave them………information.
Answers-
1. A few 2.The few 3.The little 4.the little 5.A little 6.little.
less and fewer
Rule 6:- less is used for uncountable noun while fewer is used for countable noun.
Examples
1. No less than 25 persons were died in the accident yesterday. (use- fewer)
2. She gave me fewer water than I required. (use- less)
Rule 7:- Older and oldest are used for both persons and things while elder and eldest are used only for the members of the same family.
Older+ than (not ‘to’)
Elder + to (not ‘than’)
Examples
1. Zaid is elder than his brother. (use- older as there is a comparison between two brother)
2. Zaid is his older brother. (use- elder as there is no comparison)
3. This dog is older than that one. (correct)
4. The Taj Mahal is older than the Red Fort. (correct)
5. She is elder to her sister by 4 years. (correct)
Use of father and further
Rule 8:- Farther is used for distance while further is used for something additional.
Examples
1. Lucknow is farther from Delhi than Kanpur. (correct)
2. The police need farther information to look into the case. (use- further)
3. Please post this letter without farther delay. (use- further)
Use of either and both
Rule 9:- Either is used to indicate anyone from the two while both indicates two together.
Examples
1. Either boy is dragging me into this affair without any rhyme or reason.
2. Both the boys have been involved in difficulties.
Use of latter, later and last, latest.
Rule 10:- Later and latest are used for time.
While latter and last are used for position.
Examples
1. The later part of the novel is written carelessly. (use- latter)
2. He stayed with me in Lucknow latter than I thought. (use- later)
3. We expect to get the last news from my friend in a few hours. (use- latest)
4. She was sitting on the latest bench. (use- last)
5. Have you heard the last/latest news of news of this week. (both are correct but meaning is different)
Difference between latter and last.
Rule 11:- Latter is used for two persons or things while last is used for more than two persons or things.
Examples
1. Among John, Peter and Lucy the latter one is a player. (use- last)
2. Both the tiger and the leopard belong to cat family but the former is much more ferocious than the last. (use- latter as comparison between two animals)
Rule 12:- Use of As……As and So…….As
'As…….As' is used both in positive and negative sentence.
'So……As' is used only in the negative sentence.
Examples
1. She is not as beautiful as her sister.
2. She is not so beautiful as her sister.
3. He is as intelligent as his brother.
4. He is so intelligent as his brother. (incorrect because so…as doesn’t come in positive sentence)
Rule 13 :- Use of nearest and next
'Nearest' is used for the shortest distance.
'Next' indicates position coming one after another.
Examples
1. Why don’t you play the next song?
2. Which is the nearest railway station from here.
3. His house is next to the police station.
Rule 14:- Use of whole and all
(i) The/ possessive adjective + whole + N. (S.) ……..V.(S.)
(i) All+ the/possessive adjective + N. C. (P.)……….V(P.)
ii- all+the/possessive adjective +N.U.(S.…………V(S.)
Examples
1. He said that he would make an apology to the whole of Asia for his country’s past behavior.
2. We spent whole the summer in America last year. (use- the whole)
3. He was told to pack up his all belongings. (use- all his)
4. She invited all her friend to her birthday party. (use- friends)
Rule 15 :- 7 adjectives ending in ‘or’ are followed by ‘to’ for comparison.
Superior, inferior, junior, senior, posterior, anterior, prior + to (not than)
Examples
1. Her marriage was prior to her father’s death.
2. All his colleagues are junior to him.
Rule 16:- 5 adjectives ending in ‘or’ have lost their comparative meanings, they are used only as positive degree.
Interior, exterior, major, minor, ulterior + (not ‘to/than’)
Examples
1. I have no ulterior motive in offering you help.
2. His age is a matter of minor importance.
3. The exterior wall of this house is made of wood.
Rule 16:- 5 adjectives ending in ‘er’ have lost their comparative meanings, They are used as positive degree only.
Former, latter, upper, inner, outer, utter + (not ‘to/than’)
Examples
1. The inner meaning of this letter is not clear.
2. This man is an utter fool.
3. They heard a voice in the outer room.
Rule 17:- use of good and well
Good is an adjective it qualifies a noun while well is an adverb it qualifies a verb.
Examples
1. Her performance was well on the stage last night. (use- good as performance is a noun)
2. She performed good on the stage last night. (use- well as performed is a verb)
Rule 18:- kind of, sort of, type of
'kind of, sort of, type of' are used both in the singular and plural form.
Examples
1. She doesn’t like this kind of dress.
2. She doesn’t like these sorts of dresses.
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