English I Grammar
Sentences are complete messages. Incomplete sentences are sometimes acceptable in speech, but are rarely acceptable in writing.
1.1 the black cat 1.2 jumping over the fence 1.3 steals food 1.4 every morning Does each of these have a complete message?
Groups of related words that form a unit in a sentence. These words are organized around a head or central word. 1.1: black modifies cat, while the specifies the particular black cat being talked about. 1.2: over the fence is a preposition that modifies jumping Words in phrases work together, which differentiates them from groups of random words such as pants yellow booking the running.
1.1 the black cat 1.2 jumping over the fence 1.3 steals food 1.4 every morning NOUN PHRASE ADJECTIVE PHRASE VERB PHRASE ADVERBIAL PHRASE
WARNING: Phrases never have a subject and predicate in them. 1.5 the black cat jumping over the fence The verb in this noun clause is only actually a participle due to the lack of the be-verb. 1.6 The black cat is jumping over the fence. The inclusion of the be-verb now gives us a complete predicate, making this a complete sentence. It is no longer a phrase. 1.7 The black cat jumps over the fence. Is this a sentence or phrase?
Groups of words that contain both a subject and a predicate. 1.8 The black cat jumping over the fence steals food. May be a complete sentence. 1.9 whenever I leave the door open Does this clause have a subject? Does it have a predicate? Note the punctuation. A clause that is a complete sentence is called an independent clause.
1.9 whenever I leave the door open Subject: I Predicate: leave the door open While this may still be a clause, it is not complete. The presence of whenever tells us that this clause cannot stand on its own. It needs an independent clause to give it meaning. A clause that gets its meaning from an independent clause while modifying the independent clause is called a dependent clause.
1.10 The black cat jumping over the fence steals food whenever I leave the door open. This sentence is no longer a simple sentence (with a single subject and predicate), but a complex sentence. It has an independent clause. It has a dependent clause. The dependent clause gets its meaning from the independent clause, but it modifies the independent clause.
1.11 The black cat jumping over the fence steals food; I want to shoot it with my airsoft pistol. This sentence has two subjects and two predicates. However, let s break it apart. The black cat jumping over the fence steals food. I want to shoot it with my airsoft pistol. Are both of these independent clauses? A sentence that has two or more independent clauses but has no dependent clauses is a compound sentence.
Phrases: Groups of related words that form a unit. Clauses: Groups of words with a subject and predicate. Sentence: An independent clause; a complete message. Dependent clause: gets its meaning from the independent clause and modifies it. Compound sentence: A sentence with two or more independent clauses. Complex sentence: A sentence with an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses. Complex-compound sentence: A sentence with an more than one independent clause and at least one dependent clause. 1.13 The black cat jumping over the fence steals food whenever I leave the door open; I want to shoot it with my airsoft pistol.
Sometimes we try to write a sentence but fail. Looks like a complete sentence Even has correct punctuation Missing key components of a complete sentence
All phrases are fragments. 1.1 the black cat 1.2 jumping over the fence 1.3 steals food 1.4 every morning Not all clauses are fragments. Independent clauses are complete sentences. Dependent clauses may be fragments.
Not all fragments are easy to spot. 1.12 During the Gulf War, at the beginning of Operation Desert Storm, in the city of Baghdad. What are the problems with this sentence? It has proper punctuation. It has proper capitalization. However: It lacks a subject. It lacks a predicate. It is essentially a string of prepositions that tells us where a nonexistent subject is performing a nonexistent action. Give an actual subject and predicate.
During the Gulf War, at the beginning of Operation Desert Storm, in the city of Baghdad, Saddam Hussein consulted his advisors.
1.13 Defending their position to the last man in an effort to prevent the Soviets from reaching Hitler s bunker. What are the problems with this sentence? It has proper punctuation. It has proper capitalization. It describes action. It even hints at a subject s existence ( their ) However: It never really tells us who the subject of the sentence is. Without a subject, this is nothing more than an adjective phrase. Provide a subject (specify who they are) and establish a proper SV relationship.
The Hitler Youth are defending their position to the last man in an effort to prevent the Soviets from reaching Hitler s bunker.
1.14 The French soldiers defending the city of Orleans from the attacking English army until Jeanne d Arc arrives. What are the problems with this sentence? It has proper punctuation. It has proper capitalization. It has a proper subject. In fact, this sentence is almost complete. However: Without the be-verb, however, the present participle defending is not a proper verb. Add the be-verb to complete the present progressive tense of the verb.
The French soldiers are defending the city of Orleans from the attacking English army until Jeanne d Arc arrives.
1.15 Because Prime Minister Cao Cao had ordered his fleet to be loaded with explosive mixtures of sulfur. What are the problems with this sentence? It has proper punctuation. It has proper capitalization. This sentence has a complete subject-verb relationship. However: The presence of the subordinator because tells us that the sentence is a dependent clause. Without its independent clause, this sentence cannot stand on its own. We can either supply its independent clause or simply remove the subordinator.
Because Prime Minister Cao Cao had ordered his fleet to be loaded with explosive mixtures of sulfur, it was exceptionally vulnerable to Viceroy Zhou Yu s fire ship attack. Because Prime Minister Cao Cao had ordered his fleet to be loaded with explosive mixtures of sulfur. Prime Minister Cao Cao has ordered his fleet to be loaded with explosive mixtures of sulfur.
English I Grammar
Compound sentences are formed of two independent clauses. Both ideas are of equal importance. Each clause can be a sentence on its own. We commonly use a semicolon (;). We can also use coordinating conjunctions.
For And Nor But Or Yet So FANBOYS
For And Nor But Or Yet So FANBOYS
FOR 2. 1 I had to eat. 2.2 I was hungry. How do we connect these two independent clauses? What relationship do they have? I had to eat and I was hungry. I had to eat for I was hungry. FOR shows a REASON or CAUSE. Note: This coordinator is not very common because the subordinator because is a more effective way of showing the relationship.
AND 2.3 It was raining. 2.4 The wind was blowing. What is the relationship here? It was raining and the wind was blowing. Do the two I.C.s contradict each other? Does one cause the other directly? AND links two related ideas that do not contradict each other. They simply go together. WARNING: And is NOT always an indication of a compound sentence. 2.5 It was a dark and stormy night. And here only connects two words as part of a phrase.
OR 2. 6 I could have kebabs for dinner. 2.7 I could eat pizza instead. I could have kebabs for dinner or I could have pizza instead. OR shows mutually-exclusive choices or options. It does not allow for both. I could have kebabs for dinner and I could have frozen yogurt for dessert. In this case, we have two options that are not mutually-exclusive.
NOR 2. 8 I could not call home. 2.9 I could not get a taxi. I could not call home nor could I get a taxi. NOR is the opposite of OR. It shows us two options that are not available. Neither of the options can be chosen; the circumstances prevent the subject of the sentence from taking either. The demoness Surpanakha was not able to seduce Rama, nor was she able to harm Rama s wife Sita. The second subject here is placed AFTER could.
BUT 2. 10 I wanted to go to the AGS fair. 2.11 I did not have a ride. I wanted to go to the AGS fair, but I did not have a ride. BUT shows a contrast in ideas. I think she is pretty, but her attitude is abominable. Note the use of the comma.
YET 2. 12 She hated my guts. 2.13 I still loved her. She hated my guts, yet I still loved her. Similar to BUT, but shows a more extreme contrast to the point of an unexpected result. The Crusaders were starving and thirsty, yet they still took Jerusalem from the Fatimids. The Crusaders wanted to take Jerusalem, but they were starving. Note the use of the comma.
SO 2. 14 I want to buy spaghetti. 2.15 I can cook pesto tonight. I want to buy spaghetti so I can cook pesto tonight. Shows purpose, a desired result.
Prepared by Jose Raphael Antonio R. Flores PHILIPPINE SCIENCE HIGH SCHOOL Reference: Cobuild English Grammar, Sinclair & Co., 1990, Harper Collins DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION