ENGL 497 - Topics in the Study of the English Language

1. a) Able to identify and distinguish between proper noun and common noun , count noun and non-count noun , abstract noun and concrete noun ; b) Able to identify and distinguish between pre-determiner, determiner, post-determiner, pre-modifier and post-modifier within the noun phrase; c) Explain generic or specific reference of a noun phrase , and recognize four types of specific reference of a noun phrase : i.e. immediate situation reference, larger situation reference, anaphoric reference, and cataphoric reference ; d) Describe the number, gender, and case features of the noun phrase , and able to use the ‘s-possessive case   and the of-possessive case correctly;
2. a) Able to explain the meanings and syntactic functions of pronoun , and the difference between pronoun and noun ; b) Describe the case, person, gender , and number features of pronoun; c) Identify, distinguish, and correctly use personal pronoun, reflexive pronoun, reciprocal pronoun, possessive pronoun, relative pronoun, interrogative pronoun, demonstrative pronoun , and indefinite pronoun ;
3. a) Able to identify general features of adjective , and syntactic functions of adjective (i.e. attributive, predicative , post-positive , carrying complement , and as the head of noun phrase ), and distinguish between stative and dynamic adjectives, and between gradable and non-gradable adjectives; b) Identify and distinguish between adjective and adverb , and between adjective and participle ; c) Identify general features of adverb , and syntactic functions of adverb ; d) Describe three types of comparison involving adjective or adverb (i.e. comparison in relation to a higher degree, comparison in relation to the same degree , and comparison in relation to a lower degree ), and use the suffixation or periphrastic comparison correctly;
4. a) Able to describe the composition and syntactic functions of prepositional phrase ; b) Distinguish between preposition and conjunction , and between preposition and adverb ; c) Identify simple and complex prepositions, and describe modification of prepositional phrase ; d) Explain meanings of prepositions in terms of spatial relation, relative position, passage, time, cause, reason, purpose, recipient, goal, target, means, and instrument , and use prepositions in the sentence correctly.