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Some techniques for
COMBINING SENTENCES
prepared by:
Ray Guraliuk
Gladstone Secondary School
An Introduction to Sentence Combining
Thisisyournewhandout.
Thehandoutisonsentencecombining.
Sentencecombiningisaveryimportantskill.
Theskillwillhelpyouenhanceyourwrittenexpression.
Youwillbecomeabetterwriter.
Youwillincreaseyourunderstandingofhowsentencevarietyinfluencesstyle.
Youwillsoonbecomeanexpertonthisskill.
YourEnglishteacherwillbepleased.
Sentencecombining,simplystated,isthestrategyofjoiningshortsentencesinto
longer,morecomplexsentences.Asyouengageinsentence-combiningactivities,
youwilllearnhowtovarysentencestructureinordertochangethemeaningand
styleofwhatyouwrite.Atamoretechnicallevel,sentencecombiningisconcerned
withthesystematicknowledgeofsyntacticpossibilitiesandallowswriterstosort
throughalternativesintheirheadsaswellasonpaperandtochoosethosewhich
aremostapt.
Thisnewhandoutonsentencecombining,averyimportantskillthatwillhelpenhance
yourwrittenexpression,willallowyou,whowillsoonbecomeanexpertandplease
yourteacher,toincreaseyourunderstandingofhowsentencevarietyinfluencesstyle.
Thefollowingtopicsandcombiningtechniqueswillbestudiedinthisunit:
• Verbals
o gerunds
o participles
o infinitives
• Phrases
o prepositional
o gerund
o participle
o infinitive
o absolute
o appositive
• Clauses(Independent&Dependent)
o adjective
o adverb
o noun
• SentenceCombiningexercisesandpractice
Verbals
TheEnglishlanguagehasagroupofwordswhichresemblesverbsandareformed
fromverbsbutareusedasotherpartsofspeech.(rememberpartsofspeechfrom
grade8?)Thesewordsarecalledverbals.
considerthefollowingsentences:
• Skiingisawintersport.
(verb=is)
• Skiingcarefully,Iavoidedthetree. (verb=avoided)
• Wewanttoskithisweekend.
(verb=want)
Ineachoftheseexamples,wordsformedfromtheverbtoskimaylooklikeverbs
butareworkingasotherpartsofspeech.
Types of Verbals
Gerund:agerundlookslikeaverb,alwaysendsin‘ing’,andactsas
anoun
Anouncanfunctionthefollowingways:
o subject:
o objectoftransitiveverb:
o objectofapreposition:
o predicatenoun:
Skiingisfun.
Helikesskiing.
Theequipmentforskiingisonthetable.
Hishobbyisskiing.
Participle:aparticiplelookslikeaverbbutactsasanadjective
(modifiesanoun/pronoun)
o
o
o
Smiling,heacceptedhisaward.
Thebrokentoywasthrownaway.
Frightened,thechildcriedforhelp.
Infinitive:aninfinitiveismadeupoftherootofaverbplusthe
preposition‘to’
o
Helikestoplaybasketball;tobeornottobe.
Verbal worksheet
Underlinetheverbalsinthefollowingsentencesandidentifythetype:
G,P,orI.
1.
Asmilingfaceisbetterthanadiscontentedone;tosmileisone
waytowinfriends.
2.
ThemanbuyingtheticketisalocalmerchantgoingtoGastown.
3.
Havingwrittenwithmorethanusualcare,Iwassurprisedwhen
myteachersaidmywritingwasillegible.
4.
Asitfloweddownthegreyrockwall,theswiftlyflowingwater
seemedtohavelostitsliquidquality;itlookedlikeasmoothly
solidifiedpillarofgreen.
5.
Findinganeedleinahaystackisasmuchfunaslisteningtoyour
teacherbabblingawayaboutverbals.
6.
Thepolicearrestedhimforspeeding;togetawarningwaswhat
hehopedtoreceive.
7.
TheCanuck’spassingandforecheckingaregood,butIdon’t
believetheywilleverbestrongenoughtowinStanley’scup.
8.
Mr.Landnoticedthestudentwalkingalonedownthehallway;he
waslaughingoutloudandmakingstrangenoises.
9.
Mr.Neuenjoyscookingandtoeatoneofhismealsisadelight.
10.
Spokenwordsarenaturallykeptinmindwithmuchmore
difficultythanthoseonereads,butatrainedpersoncanretain
amazingamountsofconversation.
11.
Waking,showering,anddressingarepreliminariestoeating
breakfast.
12.
Guesswhat?Youhaveatesttowritenextdayonverbals.
Verbal Quiz
Name:_____________________
I:
Eg.
1.
UnderlinetheGERUNDSinthefollowingsentencesandtellhoweachis
used (subject–objectofverb-objectofpreposition-predicatenoun)
Paintingcanbeveryenjoyable.
subject
Thegrade11swonforcollectingthemostChristmascans._____________________
2.
Theirfavouritepastimeisreading._____________________
3.
JohnandZacwerecongratulatedforwinning._____________________
4.
Swimmingrequiresalotofenergy.____________________
5.
Hisideaofrelaxingwasadayatthebeach._____________________
6.
Wewerenearlysickfromlaughing.___________________
7.
Thisclassenjoystalking.____________________
II:
UnderlinethePARTICIPLEineachsentenceanddrawanarrowtothenounor
pronounthatitmodifies.
8.
Waving,Rudyfellofhisbike.
9.
DidyoufindthestolenEnglishpaperyet?
10.
Thedrowningfishgaspedforair.
11.
Fascinatedbythenewtoy,thebabystoppedcrying.
III: UnderlinetheINFINITIVEinthefollowingsentences.
12. Thisquestioniseasytounderstand.
13. Todowellonthetestrequireshoursofstudy.
14. Onthewaytoschool,Idecidedtotakeashortcut.
Phrases
APHRASEisagroupofrelatedwordsthathasnosubjectorpredicateandisusedas
asinglepartofspeech.Phrasesareusuallyclassifiedasprepositional,gerund,
participle,infinitive,absolute,orappositive.
PrepositionalPhrase:consistsofapreposition,itsobject,andanymodifiersofthe
object.Prepositionalphrasesusuallyfunctionasadjectivesoradverbs.
Heisamanofaction.
Theplanearrivedontime.
GerundPhrase:consistsofagerund,itsmodifiers,and/oritsobject.Gerund
phrasesalwaysfunctionasnouns.
Collectingstainedglasswasherhobby.
ShehatedgoingtoschoolonSaturdays.
ParticiplePhrase:consistsofaparticiple,itsmodifiers,and/oritsobject.Participle
phrasesalwaysactasadjectives.
Thedogrunningintheyardismine.
Coveredwithice,theroadwasverydangerous.
InfinitivePhrase:consistsofaninfinitive,itsmodifiers,and/oritsobject.Infinitive
phrasesfunctionasnouns,adjectives,oradverbs.
Iwantedtobuythatnewphone.
Itisnowtimetogotobed.
AbsolutePhrase:consistsofanounfollowedbyaparticiple.Theydonotmodify
anyindividualwordorwordgroup,butmodifytheentireremainderofthesentence
towhichtheybelong.
Hisarmbadlybroken,wetookKentothehospital.
Hershouldersslumped,hereyeslookingdown,Crystalslidintoherseat.
AppositivePhrase:describesanounorpronoun.Inform,appositivesarenounor
nounequivalents.
Mr.Land,ourprincipal,believesinhardwork.
TheCanucks,thatfrustratinghockeyteam,justmightbebetterthisyear.
Exercise: Underline the phrases in the following sentences and identify the
type of phrase.
1. Landinginagracefulmanner,thegymnastcompletedherroutine.
participlephrase
2.
Makingaprofitwashisonlythought.
3.
Hereyestiredfromreading,Denise,anavidreader,fellasleep.
4.
TheProvince,notmyfavouritepaper,arrivedearlyinthemorning.
5.
Themanwalkingthedogismygreatgrandfather.
6.
Slippingonthefreshice,thesportscarcrashedintothenewbuilding.
7.
Beingloyaltotheteamismoreimportantthangainingapprovalfrom
friends.
8.
WatchingfootballonTVisafavouritesportofmillionsoffans.
9.
Thetornadostruckthetown,rippingroofsfromhouses,tearingtreesfrom
theearth.
10. Seeingthattherainhadstopped,wegotoutofthecarandhelpedtheyoung
bearcub,hispawbadlyinjured.
Phrases Practice Test
Name:________________
Underlinethephrasesinthefollowingsentencesandidentifythetypeofphrase.
1. Laughterisatranquilizerwithnosideeffects.Prepositional
2.
Donotuseahatchettoremoveaflyfromyourfriend’sforehead.
3.
Onceawakened,thoughtdoesnotagainslumber.
4.
Thegreatenemyofclearlanguageisvaguenessandlackofprecision.
5.
FatetriedtoconcealhimbynaminghimMr.Smith.
6.
Bewareoffriendsbearinggifts.
7.
Geniusistheabilitytoreducethecomplicatedtothesimple.
8.
Ihavenoobjectiontoyouturninginwell-writtenessaysformetoassess.
9.
Inspring,accordingtopoets,ayoungman’sdesireturnstothoughtsoflove.
10. Beingprettywellexhausted,Jayaskedtocomeoutofthegame.
11. Togetalongwithpeople,youmustlearntosharetheirinterests.
12. Havingreachedtheageofeighteen,Stevenhadnodesiretofallinloveagain.
13. Thetroublewithbeingpunctualisthatnobodyistheretoappreciateit.
14. Byaprivatedoor,goodthoughtsenterintoeveryindividual.
15. Amotionwasmadeatthemeeting,noothernamesbeingproposed.
Clauses
ACLAUSEisagroupofwordshavingasubjectandapredicateandformingapart
ofasentence.Therearetwomainkindsofclauses--Independent(orMain)--
makessensebyitself,andDependent(orSubordinate)--doesnotmakesenseby
itself.Subordinateclausesmustbejoinedtoindependentclauses.Therearethree
typesofsubordinateclauses.
AdjectiveClauses:Adjectiveclausesmodifynounsorpronounsandusually
answerthequestionWhichone?Whatkindof?Theybeginwitharelativepronoun
(who,which,that,whoever,whomever,whose).
Thepeoplewhosawtherobberyarewillingtotestify.
ThenewPortMannBridge,whichcostalotofmoney,doessavetime.
**Commarule**Whyaretherenocommasinthefirstexamplebuttwointhe
secondexample?Hint:consideressentialand/ornon-essentialinformation.
AdverbClauses:Adverbclausesmodifyverbs,adjectives,orotheradverbsand
usuallyansweroneofthesequestionsWhen?Where?How?Underwhat
conditions?Towhatdegree?Adverbclausesbeginwithasubordinateconjunction
(because,after,before,since,as,if,eventhough,although,while,when,unless,…)
Hewenthomeassoonashecould.
Althoughhewasquiteshort,SpudWebbplayedintheNBA.
Youmaynotpassthetestunlessyoustudyreallyhard.
**Commarule**Ifyoubeginwithasubordinateconjunction,thereisacomma
afterthedependentclause.Donotuseacommaifthesubordinateconjunction
comesaftertheindependentclause.
NounClauses:Nounclausesfunctionasnouns,thatis,assubjects,objects,or
complements.Theyusuallybeginwithwho,what,that,whomever,where.
Whoevergossipstoyouwillgossipofyou.
Didyouseewheretheywent?
Theywerepleasedwithwhattheyhadwon.
Whocametothepartyisnoconcernofyours.
Exercise: Underline the dependent clauses and identify the type (adjective,
adverb, noun)
1.
HegavemewhatIhadaskedfor.
2.
Whereistheladywhomyoulove?
3.
Sheadvisedallherteachersthatshewasintelligent.
4.
Thestorewhereyoubuyflowersisownedbyhisfather.
5.
Whentheleavesfall,therainbegins.
6.
Telltheprincipalwhyyouarelateagain.
7.
ThisprovesthatyoudounderstandwhatIamtryingtoteach.
8.
Sinceshereceivedonly12%onhertest,shemightnotpass.
9.
Hesingsasifhisvoiceishurtinghim.
10. Tellmewhatyoueat,andIwilltellyouwhatyouare.
11. Venicewouldbeafinecityifitwereonlydrained.
12. Thearrowthathasleftthebowneverreturns.
13. Themoviethatwesawcontainedmemorablescenes.
14. Wefoundalittlelakewherethefishingisgreat.
15. Whenyoufinishthisquestion,youarefinishedtheworksheet.
Clauses Practice Test
Name:________________
Underlinethedependentclausesinthefollowingandidentifythetype.
1. Whatiswhisperedisheardallovertown.
2.
Whathistoryteachesusisthatwehaveneverlearnedanythingfromit.
3.
Digawellbeforeyouarethirsty.
4.
Whoevernameditneckingwasapoorjudgeofanatomy.
5.
Ifyouarebornlucky,evenyourroosterwilllayeggs.
6.
Shegavehimalookthatyoucouldhavepouredonawaffle.
7.
Afraudisnotperfectunlessitispractisedonacleverperson.
8.
Modernpovertyisnotthepovertythatwasexperiencedlongago.
9.
Donotinsultthemotheralligatoruntilyouhavecrossedtheriver.
10. Whenpeopleaskhowyoufeel,Ialwaysfeelthattheymeansomethingelse.
11. Ifyoucontinuetowritepoetry,youjustmightfindlove.
12. Thepoem,whichwasnotverywellwritten,stillwassuccessful.
13. Whatmattersmostisthethoughtbehindthewords.
14. Thestronghelpthosewhocannothelpthemselves.
15. Youshouldnotbelatebecauseyouliveacrossthestreetfromtheschool.
Quiz on Verbals, Phrases, Clauses
I.
1.
Name:_____________________
Pleaseunderlinetheverbal(s)ineachsentenceandidentifythetype.
Example:Mikedislikessweepingthefloorsinhishouse.
gerund
Thefallingleaveswereyellowandred.
2.
Toavoidhurtingsomeone,weremovedthebrokentoy.
3.
Actinginaplayishardwork.
4.
BoredbytheirEnglishteacher,thestudentslefttheroom.
II.
5.
Identifythetypeofphraseunderlinedineachsentence.
Example:Pleasetakeapicturewithyournewcamera.
prepositionalphrase
Hereyestiredfromreading,Sarahfellasleep.
6.
Selectedforthebasketballteam,Jenniferwasthrilled.
7.
Theumpirestoppedtocleanhomeplate.
8.
Lyinginthesuncanbeharmfultoyourskin.
9.
Thequarterback,seeinganopening,scoredatouchdown.
10. Raj,thestarplayer,sunkthewinningbaskettowinthegame.
11. Hisheartbeatingquickly,hesummonedupthecouragetoaskherout.
...2
III.
Underlinethedependentclauseineachsentenceandidentifyasbeing
adjective,adverb,ornoun.
Example:Thefiftypeoplewhowaitedinlinewererewardedwithgoodseats.
adjectiveclause
12. Didyoudecidewhatexcuseyouweregoingtogiveforbeinglate?
13. Thistestismoredifficultthanthelastone.
14. Theshedwhichwefoundshelterinwassweetandcozy.
15. Wewillmeetwherevertheclassdecides.
16. TheteachercametotheconclusionthatFredwasnotfailing.
Sentence Combining (strategies and practice)
Thereareanumberoftechniquesthatcanbeemployedwhencombiningshort,
choppy,simplesentencesintomoremature,complexones.Somestrategiesare
simple:
• useco-ordination:Shelikestosing.Shelikestodance.
Shelikestosinganddance.
• useaseries(parallelism): Heiskind.Heiscreative.Heissmart.
Heiskind,creative,andsmart.
Thefollowingexerciseswilltakeyouthroughsentencecombining,usingphrases
andclausesasastrategyforturningsimpleandrepetitivestructuresintoonesthat
havebetterflow,rhythm,andmaturity.
samplequestion:
a)
Thetheatrewascrowded.(adverbclause)
b)
ThetheatrewasplayingMacbeth.(adjectiveclause)
c)
Wefoundtwogoodseats.
d)
Theseatswereinthelowerbalcony.(prepositionalphrase)
followingthedirectionsineachbracket,wenowhave:
a)
Eventhoughthetheatrewascrowded (adverbclause)
which
b)
ThetheatrewasplayingMacbeth
(adjectiveclause)
c)
Wefoundtwogoodseats(nodirections,therefore,mainsubject&predicate)
d)
Theseatswereinthelowerbalcony (prepositionalphrase)
Sampleanswer:
Eventhoughthetheatre,whichwasplayingMacbeth,wascrowded,wefound
twogoodseatsinthelowerbalcony.
**atotalof3/3isgiventothissentenceasitfollowstheinstructionsandispunctuatedproperly.
Nowit’syourturn.Followingthedirectionsprovided,pleasecombineintoonesentence.Youwillreceive
onemarkforfollowingeachtechniqueproperly(forexample,#1isoutofthreemarks;#6outof5
marks).Youwillhaveahalfmarkdeductedforeachcommaerror,andafullmarkdeductedforany
grammaticalerrorcreated.Beawareofmisplacedmodifiers,danglingmodifiers,faultyparallelismand
run-onsentences.(arun-onsentenceisnotgoodandwillresultinaoneandahalfmarkdeduction.)
1.
a)
TiffanyfoundEnglishverydifficult.(adverbclause)
b)
Shehadnotpassedherlastninetests.(adjectiveclause)
c)
Shedecidedtoskipouttherestoftheyear.
d)
VivianandEmmaadvisedhertostaywithit.(adverbclause)
a)
Theadministrationcouldnotfindanysuspectsfortheprank.
b)
Theyhadbeenworkinghardonthecase.(adjectiveclause)
c)
TheprankwascommittedinE-Wing.(participlephrase)
d)
Itoccurredduringblock1-1.(prepositionalphrase)
a)
Johnwasnotagreatcook.(adverbclause)
b)
HepreparedaterrificJapanesedinner.
c)
Thedinnerwasforhisbestfriends.(prepositionalphrase)
d)
Hisfriendsbecameillthenextday.(adjectiveclause)
a)
Herlipswerepuckeredfromthesourtaste.(absolutephrase)
b)
Kimcontinuedtoeatthelime.
c)
Kimdidnotlikethelime.(adverbclause)
a)
Jameswatchedhisfavouritecartoondistractedly.
b)
Histhoughtswereonhisup-comingEnglishtest.(absolutephrase)
c)
Jameswasaconscientiousstudent.(appositive)
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
a)
Lisawasagitatedbeyondendurance.(participlephrase)
b)
c)
Shewasutterlyfrustrated.(participlephrase;joina&bwith coordinateconjunction)
Lisaranaroundtheyard.
d)
Lisawasanavidgardener.(appositive)
e)
Shewaschasingtheneighbour’scat.(participlephrase)
f)
Thecathadjusteatenherspringdaffodils.(adverbclause)
a)
PaulisanewstudentatHappyrock.(appositive)
b)
Heneededadatebadly.(participlephrase)
c)
HewantedtoaskGertrudeoutonadate.
d)
Gertrudewastheprettiestgirlinthegrade.(appositive)
e)
Paulneverdidaskherout.(joinc&ewithacoordinateconjunction)
f)
Gertrudealreadyhadaboyfriend.(adverbclause)
a)
Hisbodywaszoomingdowntheice.(absolutephrase)
b)
Pavelshotthepuckandscoredagoal.
c)
Pavelwasthestarplayer.(appositive)
d)
Pavelwonthegamewithhisshot.(infinitivephrase)
a)
Mr.Guraliukyelledatthestudent.(adverbclause)
b)
Heisagentlepersonbynature.(appositive)
c)
Hefeltterriblefordays.
d)
Hehadneverdonesuchathingbefore.(adverbclause)
Sentence Combining -- some more practice
1.
2.
3.
a)
Davidwaslonelyanddisillusioned.(adjectiveclause)
b)
Davidshuffledintothecafeteria.
c)
Hisshoulderswereslumped.(absolutephrase)
d)
David’slunchwasheavyinhishand.(absolutephrase)
e)
Hisgirlfriendhadjustdumpedhim.(adverbclause)
a)
Theinfantsleptpeacefully.
b)
Theinfant’snameisBilly.(appositive)
c)
Hisheadwasrestingonhisstuffedpuppy.(absolutephrase)
d)
Hispuppy’snameisMutsy.(appositive)
e)
HisparentswatchedTV.(adverbclause)
f)
TheywatchedTVintheotherroom.(prepositionalphrase)
a)
Mr.Steudelisatalentedwriter.(appositive)
b)
c)
Hesubmittedhislatestcollectionofpoetry.
d)
HesubmittedhispoemstoCanadianLiterature.(prepositionalphr.)
e)
CanadianLiteratureisoneofmyfavouritejournals.(appositive)
ThiscollectionconcernsthehabitatsoftheFraserRiver.(participle)
Thefollowinghavenodirections.Combineanyeffectivewaytocreateone
goodsentence.
4. Thedeersenseddanger.
Thedeerlifteditshead.
Itsearswerestiffandstraight.
Itsbodywastense.
Itwasreadytoexplodeintomotionattheslightestsound.
5. Theoldmadstumbledoutoftheshack.
Theshackwasnearlyfallingover.
Hewasafraillookingfellow.
Thefellowhadwhitehairandwrinkledskin.
Hestoodscowlingatus.
Hischinwasthrustforward.
Hiseyeswerebulging.
Hereachedintohispocket.
Theoldmanpulledouthisglasses.
6. Skytrainwasrunninglate.
Shirleyfearedshewouldbelateforwork.
Shefearedshewouldloseherjob.
ShelovedherjobasanEnglishteacher.
Shecaughtarideonahelicopter.
ThehelicopterwasownedbyGlobalTV.
Theywerefilmingforthesixo’clocknews.
7.
8.
9.
TheGladstoneRoboticsteamiscompetingnextmonth.
Theyarepastworldchampions.
Withcarefulplanning,theyareeagertobeginthecompetition.
Theywouldliketobethebestagain.
Theweatherwashot.
Theweatherwasdry.
JoeDhillonheadedforasmallirrigationpond.
Joeisafarmer.
Atthepondhecrankedasmallmotor.
Themotorspreadwatertohisfields.
Thefieldswerefilledwithcorn.
Thefieldswerefilledwithpotatoes.
Itsnowedheavilylastnight.
Skytrainwasnotworking.
Busseswerelate.
Thebusseswerejustpaintedwhite.
Theycouldnotbeseenintheblizzard.
Peoplebegantopanic.
Somepeopleweredrivinginthesnow.
Carswereslidingallovertheplace.
Theroadswereicy.
Theroadshadnotyetbeenplowed.
Thereweremanyaccidents.
Okay, so why is all this sentence combining stuff important?
Assuggestedatthestartofthisunit,understandinghowsentencestructuresaffect
theover-allimpactofapieceofwritingisimportant.Sentencecombining,then,isan
effectivetechniquetodemonstratesentencelevelmaturity.Youngerwritersrely
heavilyonshortsentences;moreexperienceswritersoftentakeintoaccountthe
feelorflowoftheirwritingthroughthesyntaxemployed.
ConsiderthefollowingpassagebasedonCarrieSnyder’sTheJulietStories,(anovelI
recentlyfinishedreading):
Because the girl is untidy, feet shod in dirty flip flops, hair tangled and straggling,
her body neither fat nor thin, Juliet does not recognize her but there are many
clues as to whom the girl is, so she stands. Juliet does not hesitate. She takes
the girl by the hand and walks to the street’s edge. She waits for a break in traffic.
They cross.
Canyourecognizetheuseofanadverbclause,aseriesofabsolutephrasesand
coordinationemployedinthefirstsentence?Whateffectiscreatedbytheuseof
shorter,simplesentencestowardstheend?
Asyoureadtheworksofothers,beawareofsentencestructures.Trytoimitate
structuresyoufindeffective.Learnfromgoodwriters.Beawareofhowonewrites.
Asyouwriteyourowncompositionsandstories,beawareofyourownsentence
structures.
Asyoudevelopyourabilitytocomposesentencesofvaryinglengths,beawareofthe
commongrammaticalerrorsthatmaysurface.Incorrectlycombinedsentencesoften
containone(ormore)ofthefollowingerrors:
o misplacedmodifier
o danglingmodifier
o faultyparallelism
o run-onsentence(commasplice)
o commaerror
Refertoyourpastclassworkconcerningthese(andother)grammaticalandusage
errors.CheckouttheOn-lineWritingLab(Owl)atPurdueUniversityforfurther
reviewifneeded.