Academic English > Grammar
Although the grammer used in Academic English is formal, wherever possible, the writing should be structured with clarity and simplisity in mind. It is worth noting also that some grammar points can and do overlap with aspects of ‘structure’ and, vice versa.
| ITEM | SHORT DESCRIPTION |
| Punctuation | Punctuation (. , ; : ‘ ” – ! ?) is used in and between sentences in order to make them understandable and readable. |
| Apostrophes | In English, apostrophes have three uses: (1) To indicate possession (e.g. Ahmed‘s pen) (2) To indicate time and measurement (sometimes) (3) To form contractions (e.g. we shouldn‘t say can‘t). |
| Articles | In English the articles are: the a an and also the “Ø” zero article |
| Adjectives | Adjectives describe nouns and pronouns |
| Pronouns | Pronouns are mostly used to replace nouns I, you, she, he, it, they and we Me, you, him, her, then and us |
| its or it’s | It’s is short for it is or it has. Its is the possessive form of it. |
| This or That | This book is next to me (“close”). That book over there (“far away”). |
| These or Those | These students (close to me). Those students (not close to me). |
| e.g., or i.e., | These abbreviations – e.g. (from the Latin exempli gratia) and i.e. (from the Latin id est) are often confused because both are used to clarify something previously mentioned. e.g. means “for example”. i.e. means “in other words.” |
