A noun's a thing. A verb's the thing it does. An adjective is what describes the noun. In "The can of beets is filled with purple fuzz" of and with are prepositions. The's an article, a can's a noun, a noun's a thing. A verb's the thing it does. A can can roll—or not. What isn't was or might be, might meaning not yet known. "Our can of beets is filled with purple fuzz" is present tense. While words like our and us are pronouns—i.e. it is moldy, they are icky brown. A noun's a thing; a verb's the thing it does. Is is a helping verb. It helps because filled isn't a full verb. Can's what our owns in "Our can of beets is filled with purple fuzz." See? There's almost nothing to it. Just memorize these rules...or write them down! A noun's a thing, a verb's the thing it does. The can of beets is filled with purple fuzz.
—Steve Kowit
Rights & Access
From In the Palm of Your Hand: The Poet's Portable Workshop, 1995
Tilbury House, Publishers, Gardiner, Maine
Copyright 1995 by Steve Kowit.
All rights reserved.
Reprinted by permission of Tilbury House, Publishers from In the Palm of Your Hand: The Poet's Portable Workshop. Copyright 1995 by Steve Kowit. For further permissions information, contact Tilbury House, Publishers, 2 Mechanic Street, #3, Gardiner, Maine 04345, http://www.tilburyhouse.com.
-
Steve Kowit
Steve Kowit (1938-2015) was a poet, essayist, teacher, and workshop facilitator. He published thirteen poetry collections, including Cherish: New and Selected Poems (University of Tampa Press, 2015).