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Knowing the Namers

51

Guffey, Business English 8e, ©2005, Mason:South-Western

Nouns

Possessive Nouns

Personal Pronouns

Pronouns and Antecedents

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Nouns

1. attorneys 2. shelves 3. potatoes 4. leaves of absence 5. criteria or criterions

O B J E C T I V E S

When you have completed the materials in this chapter, you will be able to do thefollowing:

Level I

• Recognize four kinds of nouns.

Level II

• Spell challenging plural nouns ending in y, o, and f.• Form the plurals of compound nouns, numerals, letters, degrees, and abbrevia-

tions.

Level III

• Recognize and use correctly foreign plural nouns and selected special nouns.• Use plural personal titles appropriately.

P R E T E S T

Underline any incorrectly spelled noun in the following sentences. Write the cor-rect spelling in the space provided.

1. Several attornies requested tax write-offs for books. attorneys

2. Three children put their books on the bottom shelfs. shelves

3. At the market she purchased some tomatoes and potatos. potatoes

4. Our two CPAs both asked for leave of absences in June. leaves of absence

5. Based on all the criterion, several diagnoses were given. criteria or criterions

TEACHING TIPTell students that inmany ways we take afocused approach inthis book. Ratherthan study all lan-guage rules, we con-centrate only onareas where we knowwriters and speakershave trouble.

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As you will recall from Chapter 2, nouns name persons, places, things, qualities, andconcepts. In this chapter you’ll learn to distinguish concrete from abstract nounsand common from proper nouns. The principal emphasis, however, will be on form-ing and spelling plural nouns, an area of confusion for many business writers.

Beginning with this chapter, concepts are presented in levels, progressing frombasic, frequently used concepts at Level I to more complex and less frequently usedconcepts at Level III. This unique separation of concepts has proved very effective inhelping students understand, retain, and apply the information taught in this book.

L E V E L I

KINDS OF NOUNSAs the “namers” in our language, nouns perform an important function. They of-ten serve as sentence subjects. To help you understand nouns better, we divide theminto two categories: concrete and abstract.

Concrete and Abstract NounsConcrete nouns name specific objects that you can actually see, hear, feel, taste, orsmell. Abstract nouns name qualities and concepts. Because concrete nouns are pre-cise, they are more forceful in writing and talking than abstract nouns.

Concrete Nouns

laptop dentist stapler

orchid quarterback dictionary

gorilla refrigerator bagel

Abstract Nouns

freedom happiness technology

accuracy memory personality

truth value success

Common and Proper NounsCommon nouns name generalized persons, places, and things. Proper nouns, on theother hand, name specific persons, places, and things. They are always capitalized.Rules for capitalization are presented in Chapter 19.

Common Nouns

document dog organization

candy student radio

photocopier company magazine

Proper Nouns

Bill of Rights Labrador retriever United Nations

Snickers candy bar Mark McKinley Motorola cell phone

Xerox machine Coca-Cola Company Forbes magazine

Note: Common nouns following proper nouns are not capitalized.

Nouns Chapter 4 53

CAREER TIPSuccessful job appli-cants fill their résumés with con-crete expressions andquantifiable datarather than abstrac-tions. Instead ofWorked as lab assis-tant, try Assisted over300 students and 25faculty members usingWord, Excel, and Ac-cess in computer lab.

HOT LINKWhat are “count”and “noncount”nouns? Learn more athttp://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/esl/eslcount.html.

HOT LINKRemember, at theGuffey Student WebSite you will find anupdated list of all theURLs used as HotLinks.

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Basic PluralsSingular nouns name one person, place, or thing. Plural nouns name two or more.At Level I you will learn basic rules for forming plurals. At Level II you will learnhow to form the plurals of nouns that create spelling problems.

• Most regular nouns form the plural with the addition of s.

advantage, advantages password, passwords graphic, graphics

house, houses issue, issues merchant, merchants

passenger, passengers Johnson, Johnsons Juan, Juans

Note: Most proper nouns (Johnson, Juan) become plural the same way that commonnouns do.

• Nouns ending in s, x, z, ch, or sh form the plural with the addition of es.

box, boxes brush, brushes business, businesses

bunch, bunches dish, dishes fax, faxes

virus, viruses Sanchez, Sanchezes BUT: quiz, quizzes

• Irregular nouns form the plural by changing the spelling of the word.

child, children foot, feet goose, geese

man, men mouse, mice ox, oxen, oxes

Because of space restrictions most dictionaries do not show plurals of regularnouns. Thus, if you look up the plural of ranch, you probably will not find it.Dictionaries do show the plurals of nouns that might be confusing or difficult tospell.

Be careful not to use apostrophes (’) to form plural nouns. Reserve the apostro-phe to show possession. (Chapter 5 discusses possessive nouns in detail.)

Incorrect: Many basketball and football star’s earn big salary’s.

Correct: Many basketball and football stars earn big salaries.

In using plural words, do not confuse nouns with verbs (He saves [verb] his moneyin two safes [noun]). Be especially mindful of the following words:

Nouns Verbs

belief, beliefs believe, believes

leaf, leaves (foliage) leave, leaves (to depart)

loaf, loaves (of bread) loaf, loafs (to be idle)

proof, proofs prove, proves

Now complete the reinforcement exercises for Level I beginning on page 61.

54 Unit 2 Knowing the Namers


SPOT THE BLOOPERAdvertisement forKimberly WoodsApartment Houses,San Jose [California]:“MAKE THE JONESJEALOUS.”

SPOT THE BLOOPERFrom the Democratand Chronicle[Rochester, NewYork]: “Foremans andsupervisors will re-ceive training.”

SPOT THE BLOOPERNabisco introduced anew product as TeddyGraham Bearwich’s.Not long after, it qui-etly gave the box anew design and newname, T. G. Bear-wiches.

SPOT THE BLOOPERSign on Brooklyn,New York, garage:“Flat’s Fixed.”

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L E V E L I I

CHALLENGING NOUN PLURALSYour ability to spell certain challenging nouns can be greatly improved by studyingthe following rules and examples.

• Common nouns ending in y form the plural in two ways.

a. When the y is preceded by a vowel (a, e, i, o, u), the plural is formedwith the addition of s only.

attorney, attorneys journey, journeys key, keys

turkey, turkeys valley, valleys Garvey, Garveys

b. When the y is preceded by a consonant (all letters other than vowels),the plural is formed by changing the y to ies.

city, cities country, countries currency, currencies

luxury, luxuries quality, qualities secretary, secretaries

Note: This rule does not apply to the plural forms of proper nouns: Amy, Amys;Lowry, Lowrys; Kelly, Kellys.

• Nouns ending in f or fe follow no standard rules in the formation of plu-rals. Study the examples shown here, and use a dictionary when in doubt.When two forms are shown, the preferred appears first.

Add s Change to ves Both Forms Recognized

brief, briefs half, halves calves, calfs

cliff, cliffs knife, knives dwarfs, dwarves

safe, safes leaf, leaves wharves, wharfs

staff, staffs shelf, shelves scarves, scarfs

sheriff, sheriffs wife, wives

Wolf, Wolfs wolf, wolves

• Nouns ending in o may be made plural by adding s or es.

a. When the o is preceded by a vowel, the plural is formed by adding s only.

curio, curios patio, patios portfolio, portfolios

radio, radios ratio, ratios studio, studios

b. When the o is preceded by a consonant, the plural is formed by addings or es. Study the following examples and again use your dictionary when-ever in doubt. When two forms are shown, the preferred one appears first.

Add s Add es Both Forms Recognized

auto, autos echo, echoes cargoes, cargos

logo, logos embargo, embargoes commandos, commandoes

photo, photos hero, heroes mosquitoes, mosquitos

typo, typos potato, potatoes tornadoes, tornados

memo, memos tomato, tomatoes volcanos, volcanoes

Soto, Sotos veto, vetoes zeros, zeroes

Nouns Chapter 4 55


STUDY TIPIn making surnamesplural, never changethe original spellings.Adding s or es is ac-ceptable, but chang-ing Kennedy toKennedies changes theoriginal spelling.

TEACHING TIPFor fun in formingplurals of surnames,ask students if Freeman becomesFreemen, Lightfootbecomes Lightfeet,Rothchild becomesRothchildren, or Mowrybecomes Mowries. Toget students furtherinvolved, list some oftheir surnames on thechalkboard. Then askthe class to makethese names plural.

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c. Musical terms ending in o always form the plural with the addition of sonly.

alto, altos banjo, banjos basso, bassos

cello, cellos contralto, contraltos piano, pianos

• Compound nouns may be written as single words, may be hyphenated, ormay appear as two words.

a. When written as single words, compound nouns form the plural by ap-propriate changes in the final element.

bookshelf, bookshelves footnote, footnotes payroll, payrolls

photocopy, photocopies printout, printouts walkway, walkways

b. When written in hyphenated or open form, compound nouns form theplural by appropriate changes in the principal noun.

accounts payable bills of lading boards of directors

editors in chief leaves of absence lookers-on

mayors-elect mothers-in-law runners-up

c. If the compound noun has no principal noun at all, the final elementis made plural.

cure-alls go-betweens know-it-alls

no-shows run-ins show-offs

start-ups trade-ins write-ups

d. Some compound noun plurals have two recognized forms. In the fol-lowing list, the preferred form is shown first.

attorneys general, attorney generals

cupfuls, cupsful; teaspoonfuls, teaspoonsful

courts-martial, court-martials; notaries public, notary publics

• Numerals, alphabet letters, isolated words, and degrees are made plural byadding s, es, or ’s. The trend is to use the ‘s only when necessary for clarity.

a. Numerals and uppercase letters (with the exception of A, I, M, and U)require only s in plural formation.

2000s all Bs and Cs three Rs

three Cs of credit W-2s and 1040s 9s and 10s

b. Isolated words used as nouns are made plural with the addition of s ores, as needed for pronunciation.

pros and cons ifs, ands, or buts yeses and noes

whys and wherefores ins and outs (or yeses and nos)

c. Degrees are made plural with the addition of s.

A.A.s B.S.s Ph.D.s

R.N.s M.B.A.s M.D.s

d. Isolated lowercase letters and the capital letters A, I, M, and U require ’sfor clarity.

p’s and q’s M’s A’s



SPOT THE BLOOPERIn an advertisementfor AcceleratedSchools in Colorado’sRocky Mountain News:“STUDENT’S DON’THAVE TO FAIL.”

TEACHING TIPAlthough a few au-thorities still recog-nize the use of anapostrophe in someplural forms (2000’s,three R’s), the apostro-phe is functionallyunnecessary unlessconfusion would re-sult without it.

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• Abbreviations are usually made plural by adding s to the singular form.

bldg., bldgs. DVD, DVDs CPA, CPAs

dept., depts. FAQ, FAQs mgr., mgrs.

No., Nos. wk., wks. yr., yrs.

The singular and plural forms of abbreviations for units of measurement are, how-ever, often identical.

deg. (degree or degrees) in. (inch or inches)

ft. (foot or feet) oz. (ounce or ounces)

Some units of measurement have two plural forms.

lb. or lbs. yd. or yds. qt. or qts.

Now complete the reinforcement exercises for Level II.

L E V E L I I I

SPECIAL PLURAL FORMSSelected nouns borrowed from foreign languages and other special nouns requireyour attention because their plural forms can be confusing.

• Nouns borrowed from foreign languages may retain a foreign plural. Afew, however, have an Americanized plural form, shown in parentheses.Check your dictionary for the preferred form.

Singular Plural

alumna (feminine) alumnae (pronounced a-LUM-nee)

alumnus (masculine) alumni (pronounced a-LUM-ni)

analysis analyses

bacterium bacteria

basis bases

crisis crises

criterion criteria (or criterions)

curriculum curricula (or curriculums)

datum data*

diagnosis diagnoses

erratum errata

formula formulae (or formulas)

hypothesis hypotheses

memorandum memoranda (or memorandums)

parenthesis parentheses

phenomenon phenomena

stimulus stimuli

thesis theses

* See discussion on p. 59.

Nouns Chapter 4 57


TEACHING TIPSuggest to studentsthat whenever a lan-guage choice exists(lb. or lbs.), alwaysuse the simplerform—if clarity is not sacrificed.

STUDY TIPLanguage purists con-tend that the worddata can only be plural (the data are).However, see the Hot-line Queries for another view.

SPOT THE BLOOPERFrom The Journal[Bath County, Ohio]announcing honorsfor two female gradu-ates: . . . the awardgoes “to an alumniwho has made a sig-nificant contributionor given extraordi-nary service.”

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• Personal titles may have both formal and informal plural forms.

Singular Formal Plurals Informal Plurals

Miss the Misses Smith the Miss Smiths

Mr. Messrs.* Kahn and Lee Mr. Kahn and Mr. Lee

Mrs. Mmes.† Davis and Klein Mrs. Davis and Mrs. Klein

Ms. Mses.‡ Dean and May Ms. Dean and Ms. May

* Pronounced MES-erz (abbreviation of Messieurs)† Pronounced May-DAHM (abbreviation of Mesdames)‡ Pronounced MIZ-ez (Ms. is probably a blend of Miss and Mrs.)

• Special nouns, many of which end in s, may normally be only singular orplural in meaning. Other special nouns may be considered either singular orplural in meaning.

Usually Usually May Be Singular

Singular Plural or Plural

genetics clothes corps

mathematics goods deer

measles scissors Vietnamese

economics statistics sheep

news thanks politics

• Single-letter abbreviations may be made plural by doubling the letter.

pp. (pages) See pp. 18–21. (That is, pages 18 through 21)

(and following) See pp. 18 ff. (That is, page 18 and following pages)

Now complete the reinforcement exercises for Level III.



TEACHING TIPIn only a few publica-tions today, such asThe New York Times,will readers findMessrs. and Mmes.used regularly.

STUDY TIPYou can practicethese special nounsby using them withthe singular verb isor the plural verb are.For example, Geneticsis fascinating (sing.);scissors are useful (plural).

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Q: What is the plural of computer mouse?

A: Mice refers to both computer devices and ro-dents. However, some experts prefer mousedevices, which is probably less confusing.

Q: In e-mail messages is it acceptable to useabbreviations such as IMHO (in myhumble opinion), ROTFL (rolling on thefloor laughing), and TIA (thanks in ad-vance)?

A: Among close friends who understand theirmeaning, such abbreviations are certainly ac-ceptable. But in business and professionalmessages, these abbreviations are too casualand too obscure. Many readers would haveno idea what they mean. Smileys such as :- )are also too casual for business and profes-sional messages.

Q: It seems to me that the meaning of theword impact has changed. I thought itmeant “an effect.” But now I hear thisuse: How does this policy impact on theMiddle East? What’s happening to thisword?

A: In our language, nouns often become verbs(to bridge the gap, to corner a market, to tele-phone a friend). Whether a noun-turned-verbis assimilated into the language seems to de-pend on its utility, its efficiency, and the sta-tus of the individuals who use it. Skilledwriters, for example, avoid the word prioritizebecause it is inefficient and sounds bureau-cratic. Transformation of the noun impactinto a verb would appear to be unnecessary,since the word affect clearly suffices in mostconstructions (How does this program affect theMiddle East?). Although we hear impact usedfrequently as a verb today, some languagespecialists find it offensive.

Q: Could you help me spell the plurals ofdo and don’t?

A: In forming the plurals of isolated words, thetrend today is to add s and no apostrophe.Thus, we have dos and don’ts. Formerly, apos-

trophes were used to make isolated wordsplural. However, if no confusion results,make plurals by adding s only. Because ofcapitalization, the lowercase dos would notbe confused with the uppercase DOS (disk op-erating system).

Q: One member of our staff consistentlycorrects our use of the word data. Hesays the word is plural. Is it never singu-lar?

A: The word data is indeed plural; the singularform is datum. Through frequent usage, how-ever, data has recently become a collectivenoun. Collective nouns may be singular orplural depending on whether they are con-sidered as one unit or as separate units. Forexample, These data are much different fromthose findings. Or, This data is conclusive.

Q: I don’t have a dictionary handy. Canyou tell me which word I should use inthis sentence? A [stationary/stationery]circuit board will be installed.

A: In your sentence use stationary, which means“not moving” or “permanent” (she exerciseson a stationary bicycle). Stationery means“writing paper” (his stationery has his ad-dress printed on it). You might be able to re-member the word stationery by associatingenvelopes with the e in stationery.

Q: My mother is always correcting me whenI say, I hate when that happens. What’swrong with this? I hear it on TV all thetime.

A: Your mother wants you to speak standardEnglish, the written and spoken language ofeducated people. Hearing an expression onTV is no assurance that it’s acceptable. Theproblem with an expression like I hate whenthat happens is that an adverbial phrase(when that happens) is used as the object ofa verb (hate). Only nouns, noun clauses, orpronouns may act as objects of verbs. Cor-rection: I hate it when that happens, or I hatethis to happen.

Nouns Chapter 4 59

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Q: As a sportswriter, I need to know theplural of hole-in-one.

A: Make the principal word plural, holes-in-one.

Q: In the sentence, Please read our FAQs,does the abbreviation need an apostro-phe?

A: No. The abbreviation for Frequently AskedQuestions is FAQs, as you wrote it. Avoid us-ing an apostrophe for plural forms.

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ReinforcmentExercises Name

L E V E L I

Note: At the beginning of each level, a self-check exercise is provided so that you may immediately checkyour understanding of the concepts in this chapter. Do not look at the answers until you have finished theexercise. Then compare your responses with the answers shown at the bottom of the page. If more thanthree of your answers do not agree with those shown, reread the chapter before continuing with the otherreinforcement exercises.

A. (Self-check) Write the plural forms of the singular nouns shown in parentheses.

Example: The (Cox) have purchased an office building on Grand Boulevard. Coxes

1. Many organizations have (virus) on their office computers. viruses

2. The cafeteria uses over a dozen (loaf) of bread every day. loaves

3. Most toy manufacturers employ (child) to test their new products. children

4. All (fax) in our office are printed on plain paper. faxes

5. Tracy made two (batch) of chocolate chip cookies after school. batches

6. The condition will not change unless Congress passes a law with (tooth) in it. teeth

7. One administrative assistant may serve six (boss). bosses

8. Although the (Davis) can’t attend, the Garcias will be at the wedding. Davises

Check your answers below.

B. Correct any errors in the use of plural nouns in the following sentences by underlining the incorrectform and writing the correct form in the space provided. If the sentence is correct as it stands, write C.

Example: The advertising agency submitted several sketch of the design. sketches

1. After many delays, the heavy boxs were delivered. boxes

2. Ryan placed all the dishs on the kitchen shelves carefully. dishes

3. News dispatchs from Europe described four new tunnels through the Alps. dispatches

4. Each year the American Cancer Society sells bunchs of daffodils. bunches

5. Because three Jeffrey’s are employed in that department, we use surnames. Jeffreys

6. Each employee received two free pass’s to the exhibit. passes

7. Mona Jackson purchased two different lens for her new camera. lenses

8. The Williamses are the first sisters to play against each other in a Grand Slam tennis tournament. C

Nouns Chapter 4 61


1. viruses 2. loaves 3. children 4. faxes 5. batches 6. teeth 7. bosses 8. Davises

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C. Write plural forms for the nouns listed.

1. employee employees 9. hunch hunches

2. watch watches 10. goose geese

3. Lynch Lynches 11. bias biases

4. franchise franchises 12. Lohman Lohmans

5. quota quotas 13. service services

6. rich riches 14. gas gases

7. foot feet 15. Hernandez Hernandezes

8. glass glasses 16. committee committees

L E V E L I I

A. (Self-check) Provide the correct plural form of the words shown in parentheses.

1. One of our (attorney) was better prepared than the other. attorneys

2. Both (bill of lading) showed excessive shipping charges. bills of lading

3. Upper (shelf) contain infrequently used company files. shelves

4. Small businesses can afford few administrative (luxury). luxuries

5. None of the (Kennedy) were running for election this year. Kennedys

6. Students had to show their (ID) before they were admitted. IDs

7. Deciduous trees drop their (leaf) in the autumn. leaves

8. Our organization is prepared to deal in foreign (currency). currencies


B. Write the correct plural form of the singular expressions shown in parentheses.

1. What percentage of (CEO) are women? CEOs

2. All that remains standing are two blackened (chimney). chimneys

3. We compared liquidity (ratio) of the two companies. ratios

4. President Sandra Rendell wanted a manager with contemporary (belief). beliefs

5. Both (Jennifer) are outstanding customer service representatives. Jennifers

6. More graduates with (M.B.A.) are available than ever before. M.B.A.s

7. Do the (Wolf) subscribe to BusinessWeek? Wolfs

8. Sales are increasing with all Pacific Rim (country). countries

9. Two of our publications managers were former (editor in chief). editors in chief

10. Congress established the Small Business Administration in the (1950). 1950s

11. Computer users must distinguish between zeros and (O). Osyeses and noes

12. We will tabulate all (yes and no) before releasing the vote. (or nos)



1. attorneys 2. bills of lading 3. shelves 4. luxuries 5. Kennedys 6. IDs 7. leaves 8. currencies

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13. The two (board of directors) voted to begin merger negotiations. boards of directors

14. President Lincoln had four (brother-in-law) serving in the Confederate Army. brothers-in-law

15. At least two employees recently took (leave of absence). leaves of absence

C. Write plural forms for the nouns listed. Use a dictionary if you are unsure of the spelling.

1. balance of trade balances of trade 11. cure-all cure-alls

2. half halves 12. L.V.N. L.V.N.s

3. bill of sale bills of sale 13. C Cs

4. IPO (initial IPOs 14. No. Nos.

public offering)15. governor-elect governors-elect

5. subsidiary subsidiaries16. if ifs

6. TV TVs17. avocado avocados

7. Sunday Sundays18. RSVP RSVPs

8. liability liabilities19. dept. depts.

9. Murray Murrays20. q q’s

10. valley valleys

D. Writing Exercise. Write sentences using the plural form of the nouns shown in parentheses.Answers will vary.

1. (Lopez) Have the Lopezes been invited?

2. (standby) Many standbys (not standbies) waited to get on the crowded flight.

3. (do and don’t) Most loan officers know the dos and don’ts of credit.

4. (R.N.) All R.N.s in our hospital have four-year degrees.

5. (hero) I saw a magazine article about animals that were heroes.

6. (business) All U.S. businesses have to pay taxes.

7. (attorney) Both attorneys arrived on time before the judge.

Nouns Chapter 4 63


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L E V E L I I I

A. (Self-check) Write the correct plural form of the words shown in parentheses.

1. Moving lights and other (stimulus) affect the human eye. stimuli

2. Black holes are but one of the (phenomenon) of astronomy. phenomena

3. Numerous (crisis) within education will only be worsened by budget cuts. crises

4. Fund raisers contacted all (alumnus) of Colorado State University. alumni

5. Formal invitations were sent to (Mrs.) Wagner, Phillips, and Wang. Mmes.

6. You will find the index on (p.) 116–120. pp.

7. Experts presented conflicting (analysis) of the problem. analyses

8. The announcement reported that (Mr.) Rivers and Arnold had formed a partnership. Messrs.


B. Write the correct plural form of the words shown in parentheses.

1. Researchers collected substantial (datum) to support their hypothesis. data

2. The girls’ school will honor its illustrious (alumna). alumnae

3. References to video phones may be found on pp. 25 (and following pages). ff.

4. Dr. Hsu used several (criterion) to judge the success of his experiment.criteria or criterions

5. All variant spellings are shown in sets of (parenthesis). parentheses

6. Dr. Lynn Steffen requested information about two related (curriculum).curricula or curriculums

7. Galileo’s (hypothesis) about the solar system were rejected by his peers. hypotheses

8. Our catalog shows accounting courses on (p.) 226–231. pp.

9. Her disorder has resulted in several different (diagnosis). diagnoses

10. Joan’s master’s and doctor’s (thesis) were both in the library. theses

C. Complete the following sentences, selecting the proper singular or plural verb to agree with the nouns.

1. Economics (is, are) a dynamic field of study. is

2. (Is, Are) the proceeds to be donated to charity? Are

3. If the scissors (is, are) sharp, we can cut the ballots. are

4. Mathematics (is, are) feared by some female students. is

5. The statistics on crime (is, are) staggering. are

6. (Was, Were) proper thanks given you for your efforts? Were

7. Several Vietnamese (is, are) enrolled in this class. are



1. stimuli 2. phenomena 3. crises 4. alumni 5. Mmes. 6. pp. 7. analyses 8. Messrs.

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D. Skill Maximizer. To offer extra help in areas that cause hesitation for business and professional writ-ers, we provide Skill Maximizers. In the following sentences underline any noun or noun–verb errors.For each sentence write a corrected form in the space provided. If a sentence is correct, write C inthe space.

1. Many banks are installing multilingual ATMs to serve their customers. C

2. Few students in most colleges earn all As in their classes. A’s

3. The huge number of inquirys resulting from the news announcement overwhelmed their two Web sites. inquiries

4. Although many stimulus are being studied, scientists have not yet determined an exact cause of the bacterial mysteries. stimuli

5. Unless the IRS proves that the Kellys owe federal taxs, no penalty can be assessed. taxes

6. Both woman asked for leaves of absence during the week of June 7. women

7. Tomatoes are grown to perfection in the interior vallies. valleys

8. Our directory lists R.N.’s and M.D.’s separately. R.N.s and M.D.s

9. Because economics are the primary concern, be sure your proposal outlines a careful budget for the entire project. is

10. After numerous brushs with the law, Mark became a consultant to a security company. brushes

11. The Harris’s named three beneficiaries in their insurance policies. Harrises

12. Attorneys and judges were advised to place their heaviest books on the lower shelfs. shelves

13. Because of many glitches in our software, e-mail messages arrived in irregular batchs. batches

14. Despite the new flexible hours for Mondays through Thursdays, all employees must put in a full workday on Fridays. C

15. The Martinezes discussed all the in’s and out’s of the transaction before signing the contract. ins and outs

E. Hotline Review. In the space provided write the correct answer choice.

1. We offer the lowest prices in town for fully functional computer c

a. mouses b. meese c. mice d. mices

2. Despite the manufacturer’s list of __________, we managed to blow a fuse. a

a. dos and don’ts c. do’es and don’tsb. do’s and don’t’s

3. A _____________ cold front prolonged our bad weather. b

a. stationery b. stationary

4. Many artists’ works are featured on the free e-mail __________ offered with Outlook Express. a

a. stationery b. stationary

5. Which of the following is least acceptable? a

a. I hate when I must work overtime.b. I hate it when I must work overtime.c. I hate working overtime.

Nouns Chapter 4 65


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E D I T O R ’ S C H A L L E N G E

The following letter contains 30 intentional errors in spelling, proofreading, noun plurals, and sentencestructure. Use proofreading marks to correct them.

SHEARMAN BROTHERS502 Fifth Avenue

New York, NY 10032Fax: (212) 502-7619Phone: (212) 502-8694 Web: http://www.shearmanbros.com

April 5, 200x

Ms. Judy Bender BachmanThe Miami News Examiner4421 Second StreetMiami, FL 33157

Dear Ms. Bender:

Thanks for the opportunity to contribute to the magazine article. That you are writting about

fast-food promotions. As an analyst with Shearman Brothers, I specialize in the fast-food and

beverage industrys.

You specifically wanted information about what sells fast food. Actually, competition among the

fast food giants has always been as much about appearances as reality. Its a lot like a three-

ring circus, with new flashy showstoppers needed to keep men, woman, and children coming

back. Some promotions by companys have been fiascos. I assume, however, that you are

most interested in sucessful strategys such as the following:

● Giveaways. Fast-food giants suchas McDonald’s use movie tie-ins and toy promotions that

appeal children, who then persuade their parents to come into the stores.

● Advertising. Companys spend million on ad campaigns promoting expressions that they

hope will become part of everyone’s speech, such as classics like “You deserve a break

today.”

● Food. Nothing else matters if the food doesn’t taste good. McDonald’s, for example, grows

its own potatos and raises cattle to ensure that its french frys and sandwichs meet rigid

specifications.

● Price. Cutting prices increases sale but usually for a short time only. In the end, price-cutting

erodes profites. Another strategy is repackaging popular items in “value” combinations.

Which is an effort to boost sales.

● Convenience. People often go to a fastfood restaurant on impulse, the more restaurants that

a company has, the likelier that it will make a sale.

I hope theseideas are helpful to you in prepareing your article. If you use any of this material, I

must submit your article to our attornies for approval. Call me when you would like to talk

further about this artical.

Sincerely,

Paul LahijanianSenior Analyst

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Nouns Chapter 4 67

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L E A R N I N G W E B W A Y S

Many Web sites provide summaries of informationabout well-known companies. Some sites, such asHoovers.com, allow you to see a capsule of infor-mation at no charge. For more extensive informa-tion, you must subscribe. You can find informationsuch as a company’s addresses (Web and land), thenames of its current officers, its subsidiary locations,its products, and its competition. You can even findout its annual revenue and other financial infor-mation. In this short exercise you will search for in-formation about The Coca-Cola Company.

Goal: To learn to search for company data on the Web.

1. With your Web browser on the screen, key thefollowing URL: http://www.hoovers.com.Press Enter.

2. Look over the Hoover’s Online home page. Ig-nore the advertising clutter and find theSearch box.

3. In the Search box, key Coca-Cola. ClickSearch.

4. Wait for the search results. When the SearchResults page is fully loaded, scroll down tofind a listing for The Coca-Cola Company.Click Fact Sheet to see a summary of com-pany information.

5. Read about Coca-Cola’s main products. Howmany products does it sell? What percent ofthe global soft-drink market does it com-mand?

6. Print one page from the Fact Sheet.7. Click the Financials at the side of the page.

What is Coca-Cola’s most recent annual netincome?

8. End your session by clicking the X in the up-per right corner of your browser. Turn in allprinted copies or send an e-mail to your in-structor summarizing what you learned.

I N F O T R A C I N A C T I O N

Your company is consideringlaunching a Web site. It can’t de-cide whether to use a common-noun name (such as “book.com”)or a more specific proper noun

(such as “Amazon.com”) for its domain name. As aresearch assistant, you have been asked to find anypertinent articles. Using InfoTrac (keyword), searchfor the term common nouns. You should find an ar-ticle that appeared in The Economist. In the spaceprovided, explain what you learned in this short ar-ticle. What advice would you give your company?

Answers will vary. In an article titled “The Internet’s

All-Too-Common Nouns,” I discovered that common-noun

domain names have become synonymous with disaster.

At one time, companies paid big bucks for common-noun

domain names such as “Business.com.” But these generic

names are not nearly as successful in identifying a site

and in attracting visitors as proper-noun names such as

Yahoo!, eBay, and Amazon.

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P O S T T E S T

Underline any incorrectly spelled nouns. Write the correct form.

1. The children were warned to be careful of the sharp knifes. knives

2. Three bunches of red tomatos look ripe enough to eat. tomatoes

3. Gray wolves are reported to live in the two vallies. valleys

4. In the 1990s many companys were searching for M.B.A.s. companies

5. After several business crises, we hired two attornies. attorneys


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1. knives 2. tomatoes 3. valleys 4. companies 5. attorneys

B O N U S L E A R N I N G R E S O U R C E S

Want extra practice? Check out these bonus learning resources!

Web Editor’s Challenge

Web Interactive Chapter Review

Web Crossword Puzzle

WebCheck 4.1, 4.2

Self-Help Exercises

CD Study Guide (Ms. Grammar)

PowerPoint Slides

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