Section 16.7 Homework: Other Grammatical Forms
Subsection 16.7.1 Part 1: Nonfinite Verb Forms
Instructions.
Identify each nonfinite form as infinitive, gerund, or participle.
Example (completed).
Exercise 0. She wants to leave immediately.
Answer: to leave — infinitive (to-infinitive, complement of wants)
Exercises.
Exercise 1. Swimming is excellent exercise.
Exercise 2. The broken window needs repair.
Exercise 3. I saw him running toward the door.
Exercise 4. They made her apologize.
Exercise 5. Having finished the exam, she left the room.
Subsection 16.7.2 Part 2: Complement Clauses
Instructions.
Identify the complement clause in each sentence and classify it as a that-clause, infinitive clause, gerund clause, or wh-clause.
Exercises.
Exercise 6. She believes that honesty matters.
Exercise 7. He wants to succeed in his career.
Exercise 8. I wonder what she meant.
Exercise 9. She enjoys reading novels.
Subsection 16.7.3 Part 3: Special Constructions
Instructions.
Identify the construction type (cleft, existential, extraposition, or topicalization) and explain what effect it creates.
Exercises.
Exercise 10. It was John who broke the window.
Construction type:
Effect:
Exercise 11. There are three students waiting in the hall.
Construction type:
Effect:
Exercise 12. It surprised everyone that she resigned.
Construction type:
Effect:
Exercise 13. That movie, I never liked.
Construction type:
Effect:
Subsection 16.7.4 Part 4: Coordination and Revision
Instructions.
Revise each sentence to correct the parallelism error or to create the specified construction.
Exercises.
Exercise 14. Correct the parallelism error: She likes swimming, hiking, and to ride bikes.
Exercise 15. Correct the parallelism error: The candidate promised to cut taxes and creating jobs.
Exercise 16. Rewrite as a cleft sentence emphasizing “the budget”: The committee rejected the budget.
Exercise 17. Rewrite using extraposition: That she would resign surprised everyone.
Subsection 16.7.5 Part 5: Passage Analysis
Instructions.
Read the passage and answer the questions.
What surprised the investigators was the lack of evidence. There were no witnesses. Having examined the scene, they concluded that the crime had been carefully planned. It was clear that someone with inside knowledge was responsible. To identify this person would require additional investigation.
Exercises.
Exercise 18. Identify all nonfinite verb forms in the passage and classify each as infinitive, gerund, or participle.
Exercise 19. Identify one example of each construction type in the passage: a cleft sentence, an existential sentence, and extraposition.
Exercise 20. The passage begins with a wh-cleft (“What surprised the investigators was the lack of evidence”). Rewrite this sentence in two other ways:
a) As a simple sentence (no cleft):
b) As an it-cleft:
Exercise 21. Why might a writer choose to use a cleft sentence or extraposition rather than a simpler construction? In 2–3 sentences, explain the stylistic effects these constructions create.
