Chapter 1 · English Grammar

Parts of Speech — Deeper Dive

Intermediate ⏱ 35–45 minutes 🎓 Grade 7

What you will be able to do

  • Arrange several adjectives in the correct natural order
  • Make pronouns agree with their antecedents
  • Choose between a gerund and an infinitive after a verb
  • Use a wider range of collective nouns accurately
  • Spot subtle parts-of-speech errors
Builds on / Related chapters
Grade 6 · Nouns Grade 6 · Verbs Grade 6 · Adjectives Grade 6 · Adverbs

1 Quick Introduction

English

You already know the eight parts of speech. This chapter sharpens the tricky parts: the order several adjectives must follow, making a pronoun match the noun it stands for, and deciding whether a verb is followed by -ing or to. These are the details that separate good English from great English.

हिन्दी

आप आठ शब्द-भेद (parts of speech) पहले से जानते हैं। यह अध्याय कठिन भागों को निखारता है: कई विशेषणों का सही क्रम, सर्वनाम का अपनी संज्ञा से मेल, और यह तय करना कि क्रिया के बाद -ing आए या to। यही बारीकियाँ अच्छी अंग्रेज़ी को श्रेष्ठ बनाती हैं।

2 A Real-Life Situation

Imagine this

You describe a gift:

You: She gave me a lovely small round wooden box, and everyone said they loved theirs too. I can't wait to open it!

Why this form? The adjectives fall in a fixed order (opinion–size–shape–material); 'theirs' agrees with the plural 'everyone'; and 'wait' is followed by the infinitive 'to open'. Each is a deeper parts-of-speech rule you'll master here.

3 The Grammar Rule

Rule & Formula
Order12345
TypeOpinionSizeShape/AgeColourMaterial
Examplelovelysmallroundredwooden
Opinion → Size → Age/Shape → Colour → Origin → Material → Noun
a beautiful little old brown leather bag

4 Adjective Order & Extended Collective Nouns

When two or more adjectives describe the same noun, English follows a fairly fixed order: opinion, then size, then age/shape, then colour, then origin, then material.

  • a nice big old house (opinion–size–age)
  • a small square blue tile (size–shape–colour)

We usually do not put a comma between adjectives of different types (a big red ball), but we do between adjectives of the same type (a kind, gentle teacher).

Collective nouns name a group as one. Beyond 'team' and 'class', learn these:

GroupCollective Noun
lionsa pride
wolvesa pack
shipsa fleet
singersa choir
flowersa bunch / bouquet
Visual — Adjective Order & Extended Collective Nouns
OpinionlovelySizesmallShaperoundColourredMaterialwoodenbox
1
Worked Example
Order the adjectives: wooden / old / a / chair / lovely
Solution

a lovely old wooden chair — opinion (lovely) → age (old) → material (wooden).

2
Worked Example
Collective noun for a group of lions?
Solution

a pride of lions.

Key Points

  • Order: opinion → size → age/shape → colour → origin → material
  • No comma between adjectives of different types (a big red ball)
  • Learn collective nouns: a pride, a pack, a fleet, a choir

5 Pronoun–Antecedent Agreement

A pronoun must agree with its antecedent (the noun it replaces) in number and gender.

  • Singular antecedent → singular pronoun: Each boy must bring his book.
  • Plural antecedent → plural pronoun: The students brought their books.

Watch these traps:

  • Indefinite pronouns like everyone, each, nobody are singular: Everyone took his/her seat. (modern English often accepts 'their').
  • Collective nouns take a singular pronoun when acting as one unit: The team won its match.
  • Two singular nouns joined by 'and' → plural pronoun: Ravi and Sam lost their way.
1
Worked Example
Choose: Every student must submit ___ assignment.
Solution

his/her (or 'their' in modern usage) — 'every student' is singular.

2
Worked Example
Correct: The jury gave their verdict (acting as one).
Solution

The jury gave its verdict. — acting as one unit, the collective noun takes 'its'.

Key Points

  • A pronoun agrees with its antecedent in number and gender
  • Indefinite pronouns (everyone, each) are singular
  • Collective nouns acting as one take a singular pronoun (its)

6 Verb Patterns — Gerund vs Infinitive

Some verbs are followed by a gerund (-ing), others by an infinitive (to + verb).

Verb + gerund (-ing)Verb + infinitive (to)
enjoy, finish, avoidwant, hope, decide
mind, suggest, practiseagree, promise, learn
keep, consider, admitplan, refuse, expect
  • I enjoy swimming. (not 'to swim')
  • She wants to swim. (not 'swimming')

A few verbs (like, love, hate, begin, start) accept both with little change in meaning: I like reading / I like to read.

1
Worked Example
Choose: She finished ___ (write) the letter.
Solution

writing — 'finish' is followed by the gerund.

2
Worked Example
Choose: They decided ___ (go) home.
Solution

to go — 'decide' is followed by the infinitive.

Key Points

  • enjoy/finish/avoid + gerund (-ing)
  • want/hope/decide + infinitive (to)
  • like/love/begin accept both forms

7 Vocabulary Builder

WordMeaningहिन्दी
Antecedentthe noun a pronoun refers toपूर्ववर्ती संज्ञा
Gerundthe -ing form used as a nounक्रियावाचक संज्ञा
Infinitivethe 'to + verb' formक्रिया का मूल रूप
Collectivenaming a group as oneसमूहवाचक
Agreementmatching in number/genderमेल
✎ Vocabulary Quick Test0 / 1
Q.Which verb is normally followed by a gerund?
Explanation: 'enjoy' takes the gerund: 'enjoy swimming', not 'enjoy to swim'.

8 Common Mistakes to Avoid

✗ Incorrecta red big ball
✓ Correcta big red ball
Size comes before colour.
✗ IncorrectEveryone must bring their own pen. (strict grammar)
✓ CorrectEveryone must bring his or her own pen.
'Everyone' is singular; 'their' is accepted informally but 'his or her' is strictly correct.
✗ IncorrectI enjoy to read.
✓ CorrectI enjoy reading.
'enjoy' takes the gerund.
✗ IncorrectShe wants going home.
✓ CorrectShe wants to go home.
'want' takes the infinitive.

9 Practice Exercises

Fill in the BlanksLevel 1
Put the adjectives in the correct order.
  1. old / a / house / beautiful
  2. red / small / a / car
  3. wooden / round / a / table
  4. blue / cotton / a / shirt
  5. big / a / black / dog
Answer Key
  1. a beautiful old house
  2. a small red car
  3. a round wooden table
  4. a blue cotton shirt
  5. a big black dog
Fill in the BlanksLevel 2
Choose the gerund or infinitive.
  1. He avoided ______ (meet) her.
  2. They hope ______ (win) the match.
  3. I don't mind ______ (wait).
  4. She promised ______ (help) us.
  5. We finished ______ (clean) the room.
Answer Key
  1. meeting
  2. to win
  3. waiting
  4. to help
  5. cleaning
Error Detection
  1. She gave me a wooden lovely box.
  2. Each player must wear their jersey. (strict)
  3. I enjoy to play cricket.
  4. They decided going home.
Answer Key
  1. She gave me a lovely wooden box. (error: wooden lovely)
  2. Each player must wear his or her jersey. (error: their)
  3. I enjoy playing cricket. (error: to play)
  4. They decided to go home. (error: going)
Sentence Correction
  1. He bought a plastic small bottle.
  2. Everyone raised their hand. (strict)
  3. She suggested to go to the park.
Answer Key
  1. He bought a small plastic bottle.
  2. Everyone raised his or her hand.
  3. She suggested going to the park.
Rearrange the Words
  1. old / a / lovely / clock / wooden
  2. enjoys / she / books / reading
  3. to / decided / they / leave / early
Answer Key
  1. a lovely old wooden clock
  2. She enjoys reading books.
  3. They decided to leave early.
Match the Following
Column AColumn B
1. enjoya. + infinitive (to)
2. wantb. a choir
3. a group of lionsc. + gerund (-ing)
4. a group of singersd. a pride
Answer Key
enjoy → + gerund (-ing)want → + infinitive (to)a group of lions → a pridea group of singers → a choir

10 Micro Quiz

✎ Quick Check — 5 questions0 / 5
Q1.Correct order:
Explanation: Size (big) before colour (red).
Q2.Choose: 'He avoided ___ to her.'
Explanation: 'avoid' takes the gerund.
Q3.Collective noun for ships:
Explanation: 'a fleet' of ships.
Q4.Choose: 'They hope ___ early.'
Explanation: 'hope' takes the infinitive.
Q5.Pronoun for 'The committee (as one unit)':
Explanation: Acting as one, the collective noun takes 'its'.

11 Reading Practice

Anaya bought a beautiful little silver bracelet. The whole family admired it; each of them wanted one of their own. "I love collecting jewellery," she said, "but I have decided to save the rest of my money." A flock of pigeons fluttered past as she walked home, swinging her new purchase happily.

Comprehension Questions
  1. Write the adjectives describing the bracelet in order.
  2. Find a verb followed by a gerund and one followed by an infinitive.
  3. Find a collective noun in the passage.
Answer Key
  1. beautiful (opinion) – little (size) – silver (material).
  2. Gerund: 'love collecting'; Infinitive: 'decided to save'.
  3. a flock (of pigeons).

12 Speaking, Writing & Daily Use

Say these aloud
  • She has a lovely small white kitten.
  • Each student must bring his or her book.
  • I enjoy listening to music.
  • We decided to visit our grandparents.
  • A pack of wolves roamed the hills.
Write five sentences describing objects in your room, using correct adjective order, and one verb + gerund and one verb + infinitive.
Example: I have a big blue cotton bag. I enjoy reading there. I plan to paint the walls soon.

13 Challenge Zone

🔥 Higher-Level Questions — 30 / 3
Q1.Choose the correctly ordered phrase.
Explanation: Opinion (expensive) → age (old) → origin (Italian).
Q2.Identify the error: 'Neither of the girls remembered to brought their books.'
Explanation: 'to' takes the base verb: 'to bring'.
Q3.Which verb can take BOTH gerund and infinitive with the same meaning?
Explanation: 'begin' accepts both: 'began to rain' / 'began raining'.

14 Chapter Mind Map

Mind Map
      PARTS OF SPEECH (DEEPER)
                |
   +------------+------------+
   |            |            |
 ADJECTIVE   PRONOUN       VERB
 ORDER       AGREEMENT     PATTERNS
 opinion>    antecedent    enjoy+ing
 size>shape  singular/     want+to
 colour>     plural        like=both
 material    its/their     forms

15 One-Minute Revision

Remember these

  • Adjective order: opinion → size → age/shape → colour → origin → material
  • A pronoun must agree with its antecedent (number & gender)
  • Indefinite pronouns (everyone, each) are singular
  • enjoy/finish/avoid + gerund; want/hope/decide + infinitive
  • Some verbs (like, begin) accept both forms