English I

• Verbs are words that express actions, events, or states of being.
• Follow the five C’s in letter writing: Clear, Concise, Courteous, Correct, Complete
• Format of an Informal Letter:

  • Writer’s Address and Date
  • Salutation
  • Body of the Letter
  • Subscription
  • Signature (First name only)
• Formal Letters are official letters written to people in their official capacity or to a firm, they are formal in nature
• The name and address of the receiver should be inserted immediately after the address of the sender and the date, on the left-hand side of the letter
• The salutation should be written a little below the name and address of the addressee and should not be indented in a formal letter
• The subject of the letter is indicated by a business heading written in the middle of the writing space between the salutation and the first paragraph
• The concluding sentence of a formal letter varies according to the topic of the letter
• The usual subscription in a formal letter is Yours faithfully or Yours truly, written at the bottom of the letter on the right-hand side of the page
• The signature in a formal letter should include the name or initials and surname, written under the subscription
• Salutation and Subscription in formal letters:

  • A person in an official capacity or one who is not known to you:
  • Salutation: Dear Sir,
  • Subscription: Yours faithfully
  • The press, i.e., the Editor of a newspaper:
  • Salutation: Sir,
  • Subscription: Yours faithfully
  • A company or a partnership firm:
  • Salutation: Dear Sirs,
  • Subscription: Yours faithfully
• Layout of formal letters:

  • Sender's address, date, receiver's address
  • Salutation, heading, body of the letter
  • Subscription, signature (Name in capitals) with designation
• Specimen of a formal letter:

  • Complaint about the school canteen
  • Address, date, receiver's address
  • Description of poor quality food and unhygienic conditions
  • Request for improvement in canteen services
  • Subscription: Yours faithfully
• Format of Notice Writing:

  • Heading, date, time, venue, name of the event
  • Details of target audience or invitees
• Points to remember while composing E-Mails:

  • Subject should be brief and give a clue to the content
  • Salutation: Dear Sir/First Name of the Person
  • Opening statement with a pleasantry or greeting
  • Use complete sentences and avoid SMS language
  • Complimentary close: Regards/Love
  • Formal and informal styles of E-Mails
• Format of an E-mail:

  • To: Use a complete probable email id
  • Subject: Must be appropriate to the given topic
  • Salutation, opening sentence, content, closing sentence
  • Subscription: Full Name/Designation
  • Use of formal tone and clear language
• Guidelines for Comprehension Passages:

  • Reading techniques: skimming and scanning
  • Vocabulary questions: explain words in context
  • Short answer questions: comprehend the passage thoroughly
  • Summary writing: condensing skills, word limit of usually 50 words
• A verb expresses an action, event, or state
• Time can be in Present, Past, or Future form
• Tenses are categorized into Present, Past, and Future
• Present Tense:

  • Simple Present Tense
  • Present Continuous
  • Present Perfect
  • Present Perfect Continuous
• Past Tense:

  • Simple Past Tense
  • Past Continuous
  • Past Perfect
  • Past Perfect Continuous
• Future Tense:

  • Simple Future Tense
  • Future Continuous
  • Future Perfect
  • Future Perfect Continuous
• Distinction between "By" and "With":
• "By" is put before the agent, as in "The lady was attacked by a thief"
• "With" is put before the instrument with which anything is done, as in "Do not rub with this eraser"
• Distinction between "In" and "After":
• "In" is used in the sense of after the lapse of a period of time, as in "I shall come back in an hour (after the lapse of an hour)"
• "After" is used with a period of past time, as in "I returned after an hour"
• Distinction between "In" and "Into":
• "In" denotes presence or existence within, as in "I was in the house"
• "Into" denotes motion inward and change of condition, as in "She went into the house"
• Distinction between "Between" and "Among":
• "Between" is used with reference to persons or things, as in "Divide the sweets between Rama and Shyama"
• "Among" is used with reference to more than two, as in "The old lady distributed rice among the beggars"
• Distinction between "Since" and "From":
• "Since" denotes a point of time with reference to past time and can never be used for present or future time, as in "I have been suffering from fever since last Monday"
• "From" is used with reference to past, present, and future times, as in "She was absent from Monday to Saturday" and "I shall go to school from tomorrow"
• Distinction between "In" and "At":
• "In" is used with reference to a large place, extensive operations, indefinite space or time, as in "My mother lives in England" and "I was born in 1948"