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Sentences and Sentence Patterns

The English language provides considerable flexibility in sentence con-

struction. Using various sentence patterns produces speech and writing
that are lively and interesting. Also, variety in sentence construction con-
tributes to well-organized messages. (See Chapter 6 for more on sentence
patterns.)
This chapter explains the building blocks of sentences—phrases and
clauses, subjects and predicates—and the various ways sentences are
constructed.

Sentences, Fragments, and Run-Ons

A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought. It
begins with a capital letter and closes with an end mark, either a period, a
question mark, or an exclamation point. Sentences are classified as
declarative (a statement), interrogative (a question), imperative
(command or request), or exclamatory (for emphasis).

Declarative: We reached the final level of Doom.

Interrogative: How did you get past the Valley of Fire?
Imperative: Click on the dragon. Watch out for the Black Guard.
Exclamatory: I’m in the Secret Chamber!

Not every group of words is a sentence. A fragment is a phrase or

clause that looks like a sentence but does not express a complete thought.

Fragment: down by the river where the fish bite

if he would just think
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By themselves, fragments make little sense and leave important ques-

tions unanswered. Who or what is down by the river where the fish bite?
What would happen if he would just think? Fragments must be joined
with other sentence parts to form a complete thought.

Sentence: We were down by the river where the fish bite.

He could save himself so much trouble if he would
just think.

Unlike fragments, which haven’t enough parts to make a complete sen-

tence, run-ons have too many parts. They are two or more complete
thoughts—at times only vaguely related—strung together without
punctuation.

Run-On: We have only three days until the trip starts I don’t have
my jacket repaired yet and that will take at least a day or
so to do don’t you think?

Run-on sentences can be corrected in a number of ways: by

inserting the proper punctuation, by breaking the sentence into two or
more smaller sentences, or by rewriting the sentence to eliminate the
run-on.

Revised: We have only three days until the trip starts, and I forgot
to have my jacket repaired. Do you think the repairs will
take more than a day or so?
We have only three days to get ready for the trip. I forgot
to have my jacket repaired. Do you think the repairs will
take more than a day or so?

Phrases and Clauses

The various parts of speech are grouped into phrases and clauses, which
make up the basic sentence.
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Phrases
Phrases are groups of related words that do not contain a subject-verb
com- bination or express a complete thought. There are noun,
prepositional, par- ticipial, verb, and infinitive phrases.

Noun: my widescreen TV the tired old man

Prepositional: over the wall around the block
Participial: playing the fool running the program
Verb: will be given is coming
Infinitive: to think to draw

Clauses
Clauses are groups of related words that contain a subject-verb combina-
tion. Independent clauses express a complete thought and can stand by
themselves as sentences. Subordinate clauses serve as part of a sentence
but do not express a complete thought and cannot stand by themselves.
They are subordinate to independent clauses.

Independent clauses: the floodplain was completely underwater

John got us jobs as stagehands
they took the off-road trail
Subordinate clauses: by the time June arrived
because he works at the
theater when they came to the
turn
Complete sentences: By the time June arrived, the floodplain
was completely underwater.
John got us jobs as stagehands, because he
works at the theater.
When they came to the turn, they took the
off-road trail.
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Patterns

Subject and Predicate

The subject is the person, place, or thing that is the topic of the sentence.
The predicate is what is said about the subject.

Subject Predicate
The balloon floated up through the
trees. New York City is a major
cultural center.
The zoo worker was attacked by a tiger.

In most cases, as in the preceding examples, the subject of a sentence

comes first, followed by the predicate. However, there are instances when
the subject is placed after the predicate, omitted from the sentence, or
placed inside the verb.

Into the valley of death rode the six hundred. (subject follows the
predicate)
Wash the car by tonight. (subject you is understood)
Are your parents coming tomorrow? (subject is placed inside the
verb)
There are three ships coming into the bay. (There occupies the place
of the subject, but three ships is still the subject of the sentence.)

Forms of the Subject

The most common forms of the subject are nouns, pronouns, and proper
nouns.

The stock market is strong right now.

Why don’t you pick up some lettuce for tonight?
Carol almost flunked algebra this semester.

At times, noun phrases and clauses, gerunds and gerund phrases, and
infinitive phrases can also function as the subject.

Noun phrase: The girl on the swing is my niece.

Noun clause: What they said isn’t true.
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Gerund: Swimming is a major Olympic sport.

Gerund phrase: Playing chess kept him occupied for hours.
Infinitive phrase: To see clearly is an artist’s greatest task.

Complete Subject. The noun or pronoun and all its modifiers are known
as the complete subject.

The ship in the harbor seemed small and frail.

What he said in the car surprised us all.
The trees, which had been damaged in the storm, were cut down
the next day.

Simple and Compound Subjects. The noun or pronoun is known as the

simple subject. It is important to identify the subject because it controls
the form of the verb used in the sentence.

The ship in the harbor seemed small and frail.

Daffodils open in early spring.
The trees, which had been damaged in the storm, were cut down the
next day.

The compound subject is composed of two or more nouns, pronouns, or

phrases or clauses to express the topic of a sentence.

Nouns: The Democrats and Republicans fought a bitter

campaign.
Pronouns: She and I used to be best friends.
Noun clauses: What he wanted and what he got were two
different things.
Gerund phrases: Working at home and commuting
electronically are more popular now.
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Forms of the Predicate

The predicate always contains a verb. An action verb generally will have
an object as well as various verb modifiers. A linking verb will have a
com- plement along with its verb modifiers. Thus, the predicate usually is
com- posed of a verb, object or complement, and verb modifiers.

Predicate with Action Verbs. The most common form of predicate is

one in which the verb describes some sort of action. The verb is followed
by a direct object (DO) and, in some cases, by an indirect object (IO).

IO DO

Indiana Jones sent his partner the secret code.

DO DO

I brought four sandwiches and one pizza.

DO

Michael Phelps won six gold medals in the 2004 summer Olympics.

IO DO

She gave him a rose.

Note: the object of a preposition is never an indirect object.

DO O OF PREP

She gave a rose to him.

Some action verbs can drop their objects and still make sense. The pred-
icate then consists of the verb only.

They have been practicing.

We were reading.
The reporter disappeared.
The weather changed.
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Patterns

Action verbs can also take complements. Nouns, pronouns, preposi-

tional phrases, adjectives, and verb phrases can serve as complements in
the predicate.

He taught the dog to roll over. (The infinitive phrase to roll over is the
complement.)
I called him a prince. (The noun prince is the complement.)
They made camp on the hill. (The prepositional phrase on the hill is
the complement.)
She acted her part beautifully. (The adverb beautifully is the
complement.)
We saw the tornado heading this way. (The participial phrase
heading this way is the complement.)
She lay down in the tall grass. (The adverb down and the
prepositional phrase in the tall grass are the complement and
indicate direction and location.)

Predicate with Linking Verbs. Linking verbs that express being,

seem- ing, or becoming need a predicate adjective or verb complement to
com- plete them. The more common of these verbs include seem,
become, grow, taste, smell, appear, look, feel, and sound.

He seems nervous. (He seems is incomplete. The adjective nervous

acts as the predicate adjective.)
I feel that you should apologize for your outburst. (The noun clause
that you should apologize for your outburst is the verb complement.)

Compound Predicate. At times a sentence will contain more than one

verb, object, or complement. These structures are known as compound
verbs, compound objects, and compound complements.

The rookie hits and fields like Ichiro Suzuki. (Two verbs function as
the compound verb.)
I gave away my coat and boots. (The two nouns coat and boots serve
as the compound direct object of the verb gave.)
Mark’s first week abroad was long and lonely. (The two adjectives
long and lonely are the compound complement.)
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Sentence Constructions
English has four basic sentence constructions: simple, compound,
complex, and compound-complex. Each construction uses the same basic
elements of sentence structure—parts of speech, phrases, and clauses.

Simple Sentence
The simple sentence is an independent clause with no subordinate clauses.
It begins with a capital letter and closes with an end mark. Simple sen-
tences can vary considerably in length.

I bought four apples at the farmers’ market.

I bought four apples, a basket of tomatoes, a bag of green beans, and
three squashes at the farmers’ market.
The farmers’ market is a classic example of producers selling directly
to consumers and avoiding the attempts of agents to control the
supply or to manipulate the price.

Compound Sentence
The compound sentence contains two or more independent clauses but no
subordinate clauses. The two independent clauses usually are joined by a
comma followed by a conjunction (and, but, nor, yet). They may also be
joined by a semicolon, a semicolon followed by a linking adverb
(therefore, however, because, since), or a colon.

Conjunction: I don’t know where he went, and no one has seen

him since this afternoon.
Semicolon: Harold the First fought in northern Ireland; his
campaigns generally were successful.
Linking adverb: Vivian wanted to stay another week in
Ashville; however, her parents refused to send
her more money.
Colon: You must have heard the news: we’re all
getting bonuses this year!
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Complex Sentence
The complex sentence is made up of an independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses.
When a subordinate clause introduces the sentence, it is usually followed by a comma unless it is
very short. In the following examples, the subordinate clauses are printed in bold type.

The library closes early in summer when the students are out of school.
After the clear days of Indian summer, the autumn skies grow heavy and dark.
Linda told us on the phone that they had had a flat tire last night and that the car wouldn’t
start this morning.
When you come in the front door, make sure you push it shut,
because the lock doesn’t always catch.

Compound-Complex Sentence
The compound-complex sentence is composed of two or more independent clauses and one or more
subordinate clauses. In the examples, the subor- dinate clauses are printed in bold type.

John Lennon wrote many ballads, and he recorded them while he was in England.
The letter carrier, who is always punctual, didn’t come today; I wonder if she is ill.
He should call you as soon as he arrives; but if you don’t hear from him, let me know.

Modifiers in Sentences
A modifier is any word or group of words that limits or qualifies the mean- ing of other parts of the
sentence. Be sure that your modifiers are clearly joined to the word or words they qualify. Descriptive
phrases or clauses joined to the wrong words are known as dangling modifiers.