CAPITALIZE TITLES OFPUBLICATIONS, INCLUDINGCONTRACTIONSARE WORDS TH...

6. Capitalize titles ofpublications, includingContractionsare words that use an apostropheto showbooks, stories, poems, plays, articles, speeches,that a letter or letters have been omitted from theessays, and other documents, and works of art,word(s). Possessive pronouns indicate ownership ofincluding films, paintings, and musical composi-objects and ideas. They do NOT take an apostrophe.tions.Pablo Picasso’s painting Guernicacapturesthe agony of the Spanish Civil War.Read Susan Sontag’s essay “On Photography”for class tomorrow.The Declaration of Independence is a sacreddocument.

POSSESSIVE PRONOUN

MEANING

EXAMPLE

its

belonging to it

The dog chased its tail.

your

belonging to you

Your time is up.

their

belonging to them

Their words were comforting.

whose

belonging to who

Whose tickets are these?

CONTRACTION

MEANING

EXAMPLE

it’s

it is

It’s time to eat.

you’re

you are

You’re not going to believe your eyes.

they’re

they are

They’re getting their tickets now.

who’s

who is

Who’s going to dinner?

who has

Who’s got my tickets?

HomonymsHomonyms are words that sound alike but have different spellings and meanings. Here are some of the most com-mon homonyms:

accept

to take or receive

except

leave out

affect

(verb)

to have an influence

effect

(noun)

the result or impact of something

all ready

fully prepared

already

previously

bare

(adj)

uncovered; (verb)

to uncover

bear

(noun) animal; (verb)

to carry or endure

brake

(verb)

to stop; (noun)

device for stopping

break

(verb)

to fracture or rend; (noun)

a pause or temporary stoppage

buy

(verb)

to purchase

by

(preposition)

next to or near; through

desert

(noun)

dry area; (verb)

to abandon

dessert

sweet course at the end of a meal

every day

each day

everyday

ordinary; daily

hear

(verb)

to perceive with the ears

here

(adverb)

in this place

know

to understand, be aware of

no

negative—opposite of yes

loose

(adj)

not tight; not confined

lose

(verb)

to misplace; to fail to win

may be

might be (possibility)

maybe

perhaps

morning

the first part of the day

mourning

grieving

passed

past tense of pass

(to go by)

past

beyond; events that have already occurred

M E C H A N I C S

principal

most important; head of a school

principle

fundamental truth

right

correct; opposite of left

rite

ceremony

write

produce words on a surface

scene

setting or view

seen

past participle of see

than

used to compare (he is taller than I)

then

at that time, therefore (first this, then that; if you think it’s good, then I’ll do it)

their

possessive form of they

there

location; in that place

through

in one side and out the other; by means of

threw

past tense of throw

to

(preposition)

in the direction of

too

(adverb)

in addition; excessive

two

number

waist

part of the body

waste

(verb)

to squander; (noun)

trash

weak

feeble

week

seven days

weather

climatic conditions

whether

introducing a choice

which

what, that

witch

practitioner of witchcraft

9 Organization

THE LANGUAGE Arts, Writing Test includes questions aboutorganization: how ideas are arranged in a text. This chapter reviewskey strategies and patterns that writers use to effectively organize theirideas.

O

n the GED Language Arts,Writing Test, questions about organizationare designed to measure yourability to organize ideas effectively. You may be asked to identify the best sequence of sentences or para-graphs, the best place to move a sentence or paragraph, or the best sentence or paragraph to eliminateto improve a paragraph’s unity or coherence.This section reviews three aspects of organization: