Form, Structure, and Sense 2: verbs, possessives and modifiers
Standard English Conventions is about 26% of the Reading and Writing section (11–15 of 54 questions). Form, Structure, and Sense questions show a sentence with a blank and four choices that differ in verb form, apostrophes or the noun that follows an opening phrase.
Tense: follow the time clues
Look for words that give the time: last year, yesterday, since 2010, by the time, next week, every summer. Match the verb to the time. Do not change tense without a reason; if the passage is about the past, keep the verbs in the past unless the time clearly moves. Perfect tenses show one time before another: have/has + past participle for a past action that connects with now (“has lived here since 2015”), and had + past participle for an action before another past moment (“had left before we arrived”).
| Tense | Form | Time clue |
|---|---|---|
| Past simple | walked, wrote | yesterday, last year, in 1998 |
| Present simple | walks, writes | every day, usually, now (for facts) |
| Present perfect | has / have walked, has written | since, for, so far, already |
| Past perfect | had walked, had written | by the time, before (an earlier past) |
| Future | will walk | tomorrow, next week |
Every sentence needs a finite verb
A finite verb shows tense and agrees with its subject: flows, flowed, is flowing, has flowed. Forms such as flowing, having flowed and to flow cannot be the main verb, and neither can a past participle that only describes a noun (“a river fed by snow”). A sentence that has only a noun and one of these forms is a fragment: “The river flowing through the valley.” Fix it by using a finite verb: “The river flows through the valley.” Also, a clause that begins with who, which or that is not the main clause, so it cannot supply the main verb either.
| Finite (can be the main verb) | Nonfinite (cannot) |
|---|---|
| The river flows through town. | The river flowing through town. |
| She has planted a tree. | Planted in the garden last year. |
| He decided to leave. | To leave before dawn. |
Its or it’s? Their, there or they’re?
An apostrophe in these words always means a contraction, never ownership. It’s = it is or it has. They’re = they are. You’re = you are. Who’s = who is. Their, its, your and whose show ownership. There points to a place. If you can replace the word with “it is” or “they are”, use the apostrophe; if not, do not. Test: “The bird built (its / it’s) nest.” Would “it is nest” make sense? No, so its.
| Ownership | Contraction | Meaning of the contraction |
|---|---|---|
| its | it’s | it is / it has |
| their | they’re | they are |
| your | you’re | you are |
| whose | who’s | who is / who has |
Plural or possessive? Put the apostrophe in the right place
For nouns, the apostrophe shows ownership, and its place shows the number. Make the noun plural first if you need a plural, then add the apostrophe. One student’s book (one student). Two students’ books (many students). For plurals that do not end in s, add ’s: children’s games. A plain plural with no apostrophe just means more than one: the students. Never use an apostrophe for a simple plural (not “apple’s for sale”).
| Meaning | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| more than one | students | The students arrived. |
| belonging to one | student’s | The student’s bag is blue. |
| belonging to several | students’ | The students’ bags are blue. |
| irregular plural, belonging | children’s | The children’s garden |
Modifiers: who or what comes after the comma?
An opening phrase such as “Walking to school,” or “Painted in bright colors,” describes the first noun or pronoun after the comma. That noun must be the one that is really doing the action. “Walking to school, the rain started.” is wrong because the rain does not walk. “Walking to school, Aziz felt the rain start.” is correct. This mistake is called a dangling modifier. Similarly, keep other modifiers next to the words they describe: “She almost ate the whole melon” (she did not eat any) and “She ate almost the whole melon” (she ate most of it) mean different things.
Mirzo moved to Samarkand in 2015. Since then he ______ in the same small apartment near the old city, and he has no plans to move again.
- lived
- lives
- has lived
- will live
- “Since then” points to a period that began in the past and continues to now.
- That is the present perfect tense: has + past participle.
- “Lived” is only past, “lives” cannot go with “since”, and “will live” is future.
The Sarvon River, which begins as a small stream high in the mountains, ______ for more than two hundred kilometers before it reaches the plain. Many villages depend on its water.
- flowing
- flows
- to flow
- having flowed
- The subject “river” needs a main verb.
- The clause “which begins as a small stream …” already has its own verb and cannot be the main verb.
- “Flowing”, “to flow” and “having flowed” are nonfinite.
- “Flows” is finite and agrees with “river”.
Dozens of students entered the science fair this year, and the judges visited every table. The ______ projects were displayed in the gym, and parents walked around to look at them.
- students
- student’s
- students’
- students’s
- The projects belong to the students, so we need a possessive.
- There are dozens of students, so the plural comes first: students.
- Then add the apostrophe: students’.
- “Student’s” would mean a single student, and “students’s” is not standard.
Having studied the weather charts for several days, ______ postponed the sailing trip until the storm passed. The crew agreed that it was the safest choice.
- the storm
- the schedule
- Captain Rustamov
- the charts
- “Having studied the weather charts” describes the person who did the studying.
- The noun right after the comma must be that person.
- Only “Captain Rustamov” can study charts and decide to postpone a trip.
- Choosing the tense that sounds right instead of the one the time clue demandsUnderline the time words (since, last year, by the time). They decide the tense.
- Using an -ing or to-form as the main verbAsk: could this word have a different ending for past or present? Flows/flowed can, flowing cannot. A sentence needs a finite verb.
- Confusing its and it’sSay “it is”. If it fits, use it’s; if it does not, use its. The same test works for they’re, you’re and who’s.
- Putting the apostrophe before the s by habitDecide how many owners there are. One owner: student’s. Many owners: students’.
- Reading the choice alone and not checking who does the actionAfter an opening phrase and a comma, ask who or what did the thing in the phrase. That noun must come next.
- Using an apostrophe for a simple pluralAn apostrophe is for ownership or a contraction. Two boats is boats, not boat’s.