Download Sentence Structure

Sentence Structure
4.1.2.4 Identify and reduce
fragments and run on sentences
Types of Sentences
• All sentences must have at least one subject and a verb and
express a complete idea, but they can also be much more
complicated.
• We generally do not speak using all complete sentences, but it is
important to learn how to write good, complete and interesting
sentences to make your meaning clear.
Simple Sentences
• The most basic sentences are known as simple sentences.
• A simple sentence may have more than one subject, but only has
one verb idea.
• A verb idea might be more than one actual word, such as with the
verbs had lived or could have had or must have been.
Examples of Simple Sentences
• In each sentence, the subject is bold and the verb idea is
underlined.
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Matteo plays soccer.
Domingos and Kat play soccer.
My brother Kalen plays soccer.
Sarah has been playing soccer for five years.
Cadence and her soccer team should have won the finals this year.
Examples of Simple Sentences
• In the given examples, you can clearly see that each sentence has
one verb idea, although there may be more than one subject.
Compound Sentences
• When two or more verb ideas are linked in a sentence, it becomes
a compound sentence.
Examples of Compound Sentences
• In each sentence, the subject is bold and the verb idea is
underlined.
Daniel plays soccer in the summer and skis in the winter.
Cayleah plays soccer, but I prefer softball.
Isabella plays soccer and Tyler does too.
On Tuesdays, Grace and Nyadholly play soccer and I go to swimming
lessons.
• Seth played soccer yesterday, but Ashton did not.
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Types of Sentences
• Sentences can also look very different depending on what they are
saying.
• There are four types of sentences that you will learn to write:
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Declarative
Interrogative
Imperative
Exclamatory
Declarative Sentences
• Make a statement
• Example: Dayanna’s team won the soccer game.
Interrogative Sentences
• Ask a question
• Example: Did Evan’s team win?
Imperative Sentences
• Command or order
• Examples:
• Get out there and run your hardest!
• Don’t touch the ball with your hands.
Exclamatory Sentences
• Show excitement
• Example: What a great game you played!
What Makes A Sentence Complete?
• In writing, the rule is that complete sentences should always be
used, even though this is not the case when speaking.
• If you are writing dialogue (direct speech) in a story, it is
acceptable to have the characters speak using some incomplete
sentences, also called utterances.
• In order for a sentence to be complete, it must have a noun
subject and a matching verb.
• The very simplest complete sentence has only a noun and a verb.
Simple Complete Sentences
• Examples:
• Paw cried.
• Lawmay laughed.
More Types of Sentences
• Most sentences have some other information to make the idea
clearer or more complete:
• Examples:
• Ms. Stolte cried because she skinned her knee.
• Morgan laughed at the dog’s tricks.
Incomplete Sentences
• Sometimes, extra information can confuse you because the
sentence looks long enough, but it still might be incomplete if the
subject’s verb is missing.
• Look carefully at the following incomplete sentences:
• Kathleen, my very best friend in the whole wide world.
• On Tuesday, Sally, the kid from next door.
Incomplete Sentences
• It is important to remember that the statement must be finished
for the sentence to be complete, even if it has a subject and a
verb.
• The following ideas are unfinished:
• Natalia cried because.
• Zavianne cried because she skinned her.
• Cayleah laughed at the dog’s.
Incomplete Sentences
• Usually, you will notice that a sentence is incomplete when you
read it to yourself because it sounds like something is missing.
• Natalia cried because. (Why did she cry?)
• Zavianne cried because she skinned her. (What did she skin?)
Incomplete Sentences
• Here is a slightly more complicated example:
• On Tuesday, Daniel, who lives next door.
• Even though there is a verb in this sentence (lives), the sentence
is still incomplete.
• The phrase “who lives next door” is just extra information
explaining who Daniel is.
• We are left wondering, “What did Daniel do on Tuesday?”
• There needs to be a verb matching the subject.
• On Tuesday, Daniel, who lives next door, laughed at the dog’s tricks.
• Now it is a complete statement.
Run-On Sentences
• Run-on sentences occur when more than one complete sentence is
attached to another complete sentence without punctuation or
conjunctions to separate them.
• Examples:
• There was a thunderstorm our game was rained out.
• Fix: insert a period to divide the two sentences.
• There was a thunderstorm. Our game was rained out.
• Fix: insert a subordinating conjunction and a comma.
• Because there was a thunderstorm, our game was rained out.
• Fix: insert a coordinating conjunction and a comma.
• There was a thunderstorm, and our game was rained out.
• Fix: insert a semi-colon.
• There was a thunderstorm; our game was rained out.