1. Sentence Patterns
1. S V Adverbial (Prepositional Phrase or adverb)
The weasel is in his den (prepositional phrase)
Our final exam was yesterday (an adverb)
2. S V SC
The students are clever (predicate adjective)
I am an optimist (noun phrase)
3. S V SC (linking verb)- 5 senses taste, smell, feel, sound, look
become, remain, seem, appear, prove
The pizza looks delicious
4. S (Action) Verb
Mary laughed.
5. S (Action) Verb DO (answers who or what after action verb)
Weasels stalk rabbits
My roommate borrowed my laptop
6. S (Action) Verb IO DO
Marie gave Ramon a gift
Annie gives her readers insight into nature
7. S (Action) Verb DO OC
The teacher considers the students hard workers

2. Exercise #1: Identify the noun phrase and verb phrase in each of the following sentences.
Then identify the pattern (patterns 1-3).
Example: The world of computers remains a mystery to my mother.
S V SC
1. The bus from Flagstaff arrived at two o’clock.
2. The public transportation in our area is not reliable.
3. The breeze from the neighbor’s grill smells wonderful.
4. The weasel sleeps in his underground den.
5. Annie Dillard is a keen observer of nature.
6. Seemingly invisible bits of nature become visible with her words.
7. Our committee meeting is in the library.
8. The committee meets there regularly.
Exercise 2: Identify all patterns.
1. In 1747 a physician in the British navy conducted an experiment to discover a cure for
scurvy.
2. Scurvy was a serious problem for men at sea.
3. Dr. James Lind fed six groups of scurvy victims six different remedies.
4. When the men consumed oranges and lemons every day, they recovered miraculously.
5. Although fifty years passed before the British Admiralty Office recognized Lind’s findings,
it finally ordered a daily dose of fresh lemon juice for every British seaman.
6. Interestingly, Lind’s discovery also affected the English language.
7. In the eighteenth century, the British called lemons “limes.”
8. Because of that navy diet, people call British sailors “limeys.”