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Language
Words work together to form sentences. Sentences help us to organize our ideas and express meaning. These sentences then work together to form paragraphs. This module will focus on how sentences are made and how they behave.
So, just what is a sentence? Sentences are simply collections of words. Each sentence has a subject (the person, thing, or idea that the sentence is focused on), a verb which may express an action or may link the subject to more information, and punctuation. These basic building blocks work together to create endless varieties of sentences.(29)
We can group words together in a variety of ways. For example, phrases are groups of words that go together but don’t make sense all by themselves, like “to the house” or “speaking out of turn.” Clauses, on the other hand, are groups of words that contain subjects and verbs and, in many instances, can make sense all by themselves. Sentences are groups of words that make sense together and can stand alone. Every sentence has a subject and a predicate. The subject of a sentence is the noun, pronoun, phrase, or clause the sentence is about, and the predicate is the rest of the sentence after the subject (the verb and all the words that go with it). Sometimes a sentence can have more than one noun or pronoun in it; we call such subjects compound subjects. Moreover, sometimes a sentence can have more than one main verb in the predicate; we call such predicates compound predicates. In the following examples, the subject part of the sentence is in bold and the predicate is in italics.
- Einstein’s general theory of relativity has been subjected to many tests of validity over the years.
- In a secure landfill, the soil on top and the cover block storm water intrusion into the landfill. (compound subject)
- There are two simple subjects in this sentence: soil and cover.
- Notice that the introductory phrase, “In a secure landfill,” is not a part of the subject or the predicate.
- The pressure is maintained at about 2250 pounds per square inch then lowered to form steam at about 600 pounds per square inch. (compound predicate)
- There are two predicates in this sentence: “is maintained at about 2250 pounds per square inch” and “lowered to form steam at about 600 pounds per square inch.”
Note that sometimes sentences can be confusing because their main elements (subjects and predicates) can be reversed. Such sentences are uncommon, but you need to be prepared to spot them. For example, consider the following sentence that has an inverted sentence pattern:
- Surrounding the secure landfill on all sides are impermeable barrier walls.
- In an inverted sentence, the predicate comes before the subject. The main subject here is “walls” and the main verb is “are surrounding.” You won’t run into this sentence structure very often. Most of the time, you will find the subject at the beginning of the sentence.(30) (31)
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We briefly defined phrases and clauses above when we discussed word groups and sentences. As we will soon see, clauses are more complicated than phrases because there are two types of clauses (dependent clauses and independent clauses). In general, though, phrases and clauses are groups of words that act as a unit and perform a single function within a sentence. Neither phrases nor dependent clauses are complete ideas. A phrase may have a partial subject or verb, but not both; a dependent clause has both a subject and a verb, but is not a complete idea. Here are a few examples of phrases and dependent clauses in action (not all phrases are highlighted because some are embedded in others):
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Clauses
There are two types of clauses—dependent and independent:
- A dependent clause is dependent on something else and cannot stand on its own.
- An independent clause, on the other hand, is free to stand by itself; it is thus independent.(30) (31)
To understand this difference between the types of clauses, consider the following examples:
- Johnny ate the old candy. (this idea stands by itself as an independent clause)
- Because Johnny ate the old candy (this idea is not complete, so this is a dependent clause)
- Sally threw the knife. (this idea stands by itself as an independent clause)
- When Sally threw the knife (this idea is not complete, so this is a dependent clause)
Notice that the independent clauses, above all, function as complete sentences because each one is a group of words that has a subject and a verb and stands alone as a complete idea. An equivalent term for a basic sentence, then, is independent clause.
Basic Sentence Patterns
Now that we have discussed the basic elements (words and word groups) that make up sentences, let’s take a look at the basic patterns we use to create English sentences. In other words, let’s look at how we position these elements to make groups of words that express complete ideas.
Subject + Verb
The simplest of sentence patterns is composed of a subject and verb without a direct object or subject complement. It uses an intransitive verb, that is, an action verb that does not have a direct object; in other words, the sentence has an action verb that tells what the subject is doing but that does not directly affect something else. A very simple example of such a sentence is “The sun rises.” Here, the sun is the subject and the action verb rises tells what the sun is doing.
Let’s look at some other examples. In the following sentences, note that the subjects and verbs are in bold. The other words are non-essential phrases or modifiers that make the basic sentence pattern more interesting:
- Control rods remain inside the fuel assembly of the reactor.
- The development of wind power practically ceased until the early 1970s.
Subject + Verb + Direct Object
Another common sentence pattern uses the direct object. This pattern has a subject that does something (expressed by the sentence’s action verb) to the object, like in the example “Sally throws the knife.” In this sentence Sally is the subject, throws is the action verb, and the knife is the direct object. Let’s look at some longer sentences. The bolded words in each of the examples highlight the sentence’s subject, verb, and direct object:
- Silicon conducts electricity in an unusual way.
- The anti-reflective coating on the silicon cell reduces reflection from 32 to 22 percent.
Subject + Verb + Indirect Object + Direct Object
The sentence pattern with the indirect object and direct object is similar to the preceding pattern. Note that if a sentence has an indirect object, it always appears in front of the direct object:
- I am writing her about a number of problems that I have had with my computer. (her is the indirect object)
- Austin, Texas, has recently built its citizens a system of bike lanes. (citizens is the indirect object)
Compound Predicates
A predicate is everything in the verb part of the sentence after the subject (except in rare cases where the sentence uses inverted word order). A compound predicate is two or more predicates joined by a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so). Traditionally, the conjunction (joining word) in a sentence that has just two compound predicates is not punctuated.
- Another library media specialist has been using Accelerated Reader for ten years and has seen great results.
Note that there is no comma in front of and here because it is joining compound predicates.
- This phone app lets users share pictures instantly with friends and categorize photos with hashtags.
Note that there is no comma in front of and here because it is joining compound predicates.
If a sentence has more than two compound predicates, those predicates are presented as a list and separated by commas. For example:
- This phone app lets users apply various filters to images, share pictures instantly with friends, and categorize photos with hashtags.
Compound Sentences
A compound sentence is made up of two or more independent clauses joined by either a coordinating conjunction (and, or, nor, but, yet, for) and a comma, a semicolon, or a semicolon along with an adverbial conjunction. Always remember that a semicolon has to separate complete ideas. If you use one, read the word groups on either side to make sure each one is a complete idea (all independent clauses are complete ideas!).
- In sphygmomanometers, too narrow a cuff can result in erroneously high readings, and too wide a cuff can result in erroneously low readings.
In this sentence, In sphygmomanometers is an introductory phrase, while too narrow a cuff can result in erroneously high readings is the first independent clause. The conjunction and joins this clause to too wide a cuff can result in erroneously low readings (the second independent clause). The comma “glues” these clauses together. Note that the comma goes before the conjunction!
- Cuff size thus has a major effect on blood pressure results; therefore, one must be careful when setting the apparatus up.
In this sentence, therefore is an adverbial conjunction that follows the semicolon. The semicolon is joining the two independent clauses together.
- Some cuffs hook together; others wrap or snap into place.
Here the semicolon simply joins the two independent clauses together. Note that the word groups on both sides of the semicolon make perfect sense as complete ideas!
Run-on sentences occur when two or more independent clauses are improperly joined. One type of run-on is a fused sentence; these run-ons feature two clauses jammed together without the correct punctuation. Another type of run-on is the comma splice, a sentence in which two independent clauses are joined by a comma without a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).
Let’s look at two examples of run-on sentences:
- Choosing a topic for a paper can be the hardest part but it gets a lot easier after that.
This is a fused sentence that lacks the comma that should go in front of the conjunction but.
- Sometimes, books do not have the most complete information, it is a good idea then to look for articles in specialized periodicals.
This is a comma splice that lacks the proper punctuation and/or conjunction needed to join the first independent clause to the second independent clause; the comma by itself can’t adequately join independent clauses together.
Each of the above examples has two independent clauses. Independent clauses should be separated from one another with a period, a semicolon, or a comma and a coordinating conjunction. Here are corrections to the above run-ons (note that there are various ways to fix such errors):
- Choosing a topic for a paper can be the hardest part, but it gets a lot easier after that.
- Sometimes, books do not have the most complete information; it is a good idea then to look for articles in specialized periodicals.(32) (33)
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Sentence fragments are simply grammatically incomplete sentences—they are phrases and dependent clauses that have been erroneously punctuated as complete sentences. These grammatical structures cannot stand on their own: they need to be connected to an independent clause to work in writing. So how can we tell the difference between a sentence and a sentence fragment? And how can we correct fragments when they already exist?
Keep in mind that length is not very helpful when determining if a sentence is a fragment or not. Both of the items below are fragments:
- Before you go.
- Ensuring his own survival with his extensive cache of supplies (food, water, rope, tarps, knives, and a first aid kit).(34) (35)
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What is a parallel structure? It’s simply the practice of using the same structures or forms multiple times, making sure each part is written in a similar way. Parallel structure can be applied to a single sentence, a paragraph, or even multiple paragraphs. Compare the following sentences:
- Yara loves running, to swim, and biking.
- Yara loves running, swimming, and biking.
The second sentence is easier to read than the first because it uses parallelism—all three verbs are gerunds (running, swimming, biking). On the other hand, the first sentence contains two gerunds (running and biking) and one infinitive (to swim). The application of parallelism improves writing style and readability, and it makes sentences easier to process.
Compare the following examples:
- Lacking parallelism: “She likes cooking, jogging, and to read.”
- Parallel: “She likes cooking, jogging, and reading.”
- Parallel: “She likes to cook, jog, and read.” (Note that when listing infinitives like this, you only need to use the word “to” at the beginning of the list; the reader knows this means “to cook, to jog, and to read.”)
Once again, the examples above combine gerunds and infinitives. To make them parallel, the sentences should be rewritten with just gerunds or just infinitives.(34) (35)
(29) Sentence Structure. Provided by: Lumen Learning. License: CC BY: Attribution
(30) Parts of a Sentence. Provided by: Lumen Learning. License: CC BY: Attribution
(31) Basic Patterns and Elements of the Sentence. Authored by: David McMurrey. License: CC BY: Attribution
(32) Run-on Sentences. Provided by: Lumen Learning. License: CC BY: Attribution
(33) Comma Splices and Run-ons. Authored by: David McMurrey. License: CC BY: Attribution
(34) Sentence Fragments. Provided by: Lumen Learning. License: CC BY: Attribution
(35) Fragments. Authored by: David McMurrey. License: CC BY: Attribution
