Effective communication involves the correct use of language, which, in its turn, calls for a thorough knowledge of the fundamentals of grammar. This book is an innovative effort seeking to give the student of English language a good grounding in grammar. The primary purpose of this book is not to deal with the theoretical technicalities of the subject, but to give the reader a clear idea of the fundamental principles of usage. It has been made especially user-friendly.

Special Features

• Concepts are systematically introduced and defined, followed by detailed guidelines on how to use the main rules of that concept.
• Examples illustrate the usage of each rule, or more appropriately, each guideline. Exceptions to a guideline, again with relevant examples, have been explained.
• Emphasis has been placed on explaining troublesome grammatical aspects and on explaining how to avoid typical mistakes with a certain usage.
• From the usage point of view, the differences in the conventional and modern usage of certain structures have been explained.
• Several words function as different parts of speech and have different shades of meaning in different contexts; the comparative usage of such words is clearly explained. Notes for cross-reference wherever an aspect needs to be studied together for comparison make it easy to refer to the appropriate section to understand usage in different contexts.
• Each chapter is accompanied by a section, Focussed Review, which will help a reader evaluate how much of the theoretical principles and concepts he or she has been able to assimilate.
• Practice exercises have been incorporated to enable assessment in the ability at using particular grammatical structures.
• There is a glossary of grammatical terms and concepts for easy reference.
• The book is divided into suitable chapters so that one can progress systematically from one grammar point to another; however, readers may directly go to a chapter which deals with a point they find difficult to understand or use; a detailed listing of topics in the contents makes this easy.

The book has been written especially keeping in mind the needs of Indian students and teachers of English language. Foreign publications on English grammar are mostly written for students with English as their mother tongue, and so the knowledge of the basics is taken for granted; and the subject matter contains examples that are sometimes alien to the Indian context. On the other hand, in most Indian books on grammar there is a lack good presentation; the examples are inadequate; the subject matter is not adapted to recent theories about grammar. The aim of this book is to remove some of these lacunae and serve as an invaluable reference book for writers, students and teachers.