English Grammar Essentials For Dummies -- About the Authors -- Contents at a Glance -- Table of Contents -- Introduction -- About This Book -- Foolish Assumptions -- Icons Used in This Book -- Where to Go from Here -- Chapter 1: Grappling with Grammar -- Grasping Grammar: Good and Proper -- Using Aussie English -- Having a Quick Squiz at Aussie Words -- Choosing Levels of English -- Labelling Words -- Chapter 2: Controlling Verbs -- Verifying Verbs -- Simplifying Subjects -- Making Subjects and Verbs Agree -- Looking like Verbs: Verbals -- Chapter 3: Completing Sentences -- Having Subject-Verb Pairs -- Expressing Complete Thoughts -- Creating Completeness with Clauses -- Considering Fragments -- Contemplating Complements -- Completing Linking Verbs -- Complementing the Object -- Chapter 4: Peaking with Pronouns -- Matching Pronouns with Nouns -- Avoiding Vague Pronoun Use -- Choosing Singular and Plural Pronouns -- Pairing Pronouns with Collective Nouns -- Selecting Pronouns as Subjects -- Knowing Who or Whom -- Comparing with Pronouns -- Owning Possessive Pronouns -- Reflecting on Reflexive Pronouns -- Chapter 5: Modifying with Descriptions -- Adding Meaning with Adjectives -- ribing with Adjectives -- Describing with Adverbs -- Misplacing Descriptions -- Dangling a Description in Space -- Squinting Descriptions -- Chapter 6: Punctuating for Meaning -- Conquering Commas -- Airing All about Apostrophes -- Simplifying Semicolons -- Clarifying Colons -- Dealing with Dashes -- Embracing Em and En Dashes -- Chapter 7: Choosing Capital Letters and Numerals -- Covering the Basics of Capitalisation -- Deciding When to Use Numerals -- Chapter 8: Avoiding Tricky Situations -- Eliminating Sexist Pronouns -- Choosing Between Adjectives and Adverbs -- Being Clear with Even, Almost and Only -- Understanding the Connection Between Which, That and the Comma.

Creating Clear Comparisons -- Storytelling in Past or Present Tense -- Matching Up Two-Part Conjunctions -- Ending the Problem with I or Me -- Editing Out Empty Subjects: Its, Here and There -- Ending a Sentence with a Preposition -- Chapter 9: Reporting Speech and Quoting Others -- Quoting Someone Else -- Punctuating Block Quotations -- Joining the Dots with Ellipses -- Putting Brackets within Quotations -- Recording Titles -- Writing Conversation: Quotation Marks -- Creating Scare Quotes: Aerial Quotation Marks -- Chapter 10: Writing with Style -- Building Better Sentences -- Finding the Right Voice: Active and Passive -- Creating Writing That Flows: Cohesion -- Being Absolutely Clear: Plain English -- Chapter 11: Creating More Accurate Documents -- Summarising with Bullet Point Lists -- Handling Addresses and Dates -- Filling in the Rules for Abbreviations -- Ensuring Effective Emails -- Focussing on Visual Presentations -- Presenting Perfect Bibliographies -- Chapter 12: Ten Solutions to the Most Common Grammar Errors -- Adding Apostrophes (Or Not) -- Reaching Agreement -- Staying in the Right Tense -- Splicing Sentences with a Comma -- Running Sentences On -- Fragmenting Sentences -- Misplacing Modifiers -- Knowing When to Use Subject and Object Pronouns -- Selecting Prepositions -- Confusing 'Of' with 'Have' -- Index.