Grammar for Writing
SENTENCES
Sam An Teng
August 2013
Copyright © All rights reserved.
What is Sentence?
• Sentence is a group of words which has at least one subject
and one verb. It starts with a capital letter and finishes with
an ending punctuation. It expresses a complete thoughts.
– He is a news reporter.
– What do you like?
– What a lovely day!
• But the groups of words below are not sentences:
– At school (Prepositional phrase)
– A handsome man (Noun phrase)
– Who lives next to my house (Clause)
Sentence Structures
• There are four sentence structures:
– Simple sentence,
– Compound sentence,
– Complex sentence, and
– Compound- complex sentence.
• There are two types of clauses:
– Independent clause – is also called main clause, or principal clause.
– Dependent clause – is also called sub-clause.
[1] Simple sentences
• Simple sentence has one independent clause.
– The boy is reading.
– He loves teaching.
– My father told me a story.
– Kolab is an experienced speaker.
– The car looks nice.
– We elected him team leader.
– He painted his house red.
– The children laughed happily.
– The boy writes with left hand.
[2] Compound sentences
• Compound sentence has one or more independent clauses
joined by a semi-colon, a coordinating conjunction, or a
conjunctive adverb.
– I arrived late; I missed the first class.
– The students want to pass the course; they study hard.
– It rained heavily last night, so the road was flooded.
– I went to bed early last night, for I was too tired.
– You have to get up early; otherwise, you will be late for
your exam.
– The officials denied the report; moreover, they refused to
comment.
[3] Complex sentences
• Complex sentence has one independent clause and one or
more dependent clauses.
– I will change my laptop when I have enough money.
– If you are drunk, don't drive.
– I will call you after I get home.
– We have to get thing ready before our boss arrives.
– If you fail your exam which is arranged only twice a year,
you have to wait another six months.
[4] Compound-complex sentences
• Compound-complex sentence has two or more independent
clauses and at least one dependent clause.
– I don't know the solution that best solve the situation, and
nobody else can give advice.
– Some students do not study hard, but when they fail, they
always make complaints about the school.
– We have got many problems which is related to our supply
chain, and our customers have made a lot of complaints.
– While Tom reads novels, Jack reads comics, but Sam only
reads magazines.
Related Topics:
• Sentences
• Simple Sentence
• Compound Sentence
• Complex Sentence
• Compound-complex Sentence
• To read more free lessons, please click the links below:
– http://grammarkit.blogspot.com
– http://thewindlike.blogspot.com
My Blogs:
MY BOOKS ON KINDLE STORE
Grammar & Composition:
Parts of Speech in English
English Grammar: The Verb Tenses
Phrases and Clauses in English
Short stories:
He Deserves! Sympathy and Love
http://grammarkit.blogspot.com/p/bookstore.html

Sentence structures

  • 1.
    Grammar for Writing SENTENCES SamAn Teng August 2013 Copyright © All rights reserved.
  • 2.
    What is Sentence? •Sentence is a group of words which has at least one subject and one verb. It starts with a capital letter and finishes with an ending punctuation. It expresses a complete thoughts. – He is a news reporter. – What do you like? – What a lovely day! • But the groups of words below are not sentences: – At school (Prepositional phrase) – A handsome man (Noun phrase) – Who lives next to my house (Clause)
  • 3.
    Sentence Structures • Thereare four sentence structures: – Simple sentence, – Compound sentence, – Complex sentence, and – Compound- complex sentence. • There are two types of clauses: – Independent clause – is also called main clause, or principal clause. – Dependent clause – is also called sub-clause.
  • 4.
    [1] Simple sentences •Simple sentence has one independent clause. – The boy is reading. – He loves teaching. – My father told me a story. – Kolab is an experienced speaker. – The car looks nice. – We elected him team leader. – He painted his house red. – The children laughed happily. – The boy writes with left hand.
  • 5.
    [2] Compound sentences •Compound sentence has one or more independent clauses joined by a semi-colon, a coordinating conjunction, or a conjunctive adverb. – I arrived late; I missed the first class. – The students want to pass the course; they study hard. – It rained heavily last night, so the road was flooded. – I went to bed early last night, for I was too tired. – You have to get up early; otherwise, you will be late for your exam. – The officials denied the report; moreover, they refused to comment.
  • 6.
    [3] Complex sentences •Complex sentence has one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses. – I will change my laptop when I have enough money. – If you are drunk, don't drive. – I will call you after I get home. – We have to get thing ready before our boss arrives. – If you fail your exam which is arranged only twice a year, you have to wait another six months.
  • 7.
    [4] Compound-complex sentences •Compound-complex sentence has two or more independent clauses and at least one dependent clause. – I don't know the solution that best solve the situation, and nobody else can give advice. – Some students do not study hard, but when they fail, they always make complaints about the school. – We have got many problems which is related to our supply chain, and our customers have made a lot of complaints. – While Tom reads novels, Jack reads comics, but Sam only reads magazines.
  • 8.
    Related Topics: • Sentences •Simple Sentence • Compound Sentence • Complex Sentence • Compound-complex Sentence • To read more free lessons, please click the links below: – http://grammarkit.blogspot.com – http://thewindlike.blogspot.com My Blogs:
  • 9.
    MY BOOKS ONKINDLE STORE Grammar & Composition: Parts of Speech in English English Grammar: The Verb Tenses Phrases and Clauses in English Short stories: He Deserves! Sympathy and Love http://grammarkit.blogspot.com/p/bookstore.html