1 – SENTENCE

A sentence is a group of words that you use to communicate your ideas. Every sentence is
formed from one or more clauses and expresses a complete thought.

There are basically four kinds of sentences in English: simple, compound, complex,
and compound-complex. The kind of sentence is determined by the kind of clauses used to
form it and each kind is punctuated differently. Before talking further about sentences, let’s
learn about what a clause is.

CLAUSES

Clauses are the main building blocks of sentences consisting at least subject and predicate.
There are two kinds of clauses: independent and dependent.

An independent clause has Writing an article is easy.

complete meaning and it can be a
sentence by itself.
A dependent Clause begins with Adverb:…because writing an
a clause marker. It can not be article is easy…
a sentence by itself. It can be
divided into 3 types of
dependent clauses; adverb, Adjective: …which is usually
adjective, or noun. assigned by a teacher.

Noun: …that writing an article is

easy.

The subject tells who or what does something. It is a noun, a pronoun, gerund, to infinitive,
an expletive (subject filler)

Kinds of subjects :

Noun Word
The car hit the pedestrian.
Phrase
The large white house was sold yesterday.
Clause
What you have said hurts him.
 Pronoun I, we, you, they, he, she, it went to Bali yesterday.

Gerund Swimming is my hobby.

To infinitive To write a good paragraph needs practices.

Expletive ; It - It is nice to meet you here.

and There - There are some boys playing football.

The verb often tells the action. However, sometimes a verb doesn’t tell an action.
Sometimes it just links the subject with the rest of the sentence.

Action verbs

The car hit the pedestrian.

My family lives in a two-bedroom apartment.

My roommate lost his car keys.

His girlfriend found them.

Linking verbs

Snow skiing is my favorite winter sport.

I feel sick.

You look angry.

I am lucky that my roommate is a good cook.

The most common linking verbs are be, become, feel, look, seem, smell, sound, and taste.

A complement is a word or a group of words that is necessary to complete the meaning of a

verb. In normal word order a complement follows the verb.

Alice is a ballet dancer.

Philip is depressed.

The expression that describes the subject in clauses like the above sentences is often called
the ‘complement’ of the clause, or a ‘subject complement’.

A phrase is two or more words that work together as a unit and/ or as the same part of
speech and lack a subject and/ or a verb.

Kinds of Phrases :
 Noun Phrase The large white house was sold yesterday.

Verb Phrase The house has been sold.

Infinitive Phrase The house to be sold is across the street.

Gerund Phrase Selling the house may be difficult.

Participial Phrase Having sold the house, he was happy.

Found guilty of breaking into the house, the thief went to jail.

Prepositional Phrase The house on the next corner has been sold.
The house has been sold since last week.

Adverb Phrase They sold the house very quickly. (Quickly modifies sold and very
modifies quickly.)

TYPES OF SENTENCES

A simple sentence has one Playing football is always fun.

independent clause.

A compound sentence has Playing football is always fun, so I play it

two independent clauses joined excitedly.
by Playing football is always fun; therefore, I
- a coordinator. play it excitedly.
- a conjunctive adverb. Playing football is always fun; I play it
- a semicolon. excitedly.
Note: Semicolon is possible only when
the two independent clauses are closely
related in meaning.

A complex sentence has one With an adverb clause:

independent and one (or more) Because playing football is always fun, I
dependent clauses. The play it excitedly.
punctuation depends on the I play it excitedly because playing football
kind of dependent clause (s). is always fun.
With an adjective clause:
One of my favorite films is Like Water for
Chocolate, which is in Spanish.
With a noun clause:

A compound-complex
sentence has two independent
clauses and one ( or more)
dependent clauses.
She doesn’t agree that grammar is easy.
Because grammar is easy, I learned it
quickly, but it took me several years to
master the writing.

Simple Sentences

A simple sentence is one independent clause.

1. Water boils at one hundred degrees Centigrade.

2. Iron and gold are metal.

3. The students read the text and wrote the summary of it.

Notice that the second sentence has two subjects: iron and gold. This is called compound
subject. The third sentence has two verbs: read and wrote. This is called compound verb.

Compound Sentences

A compound sentence is two or more independent clauses joined together. There are three
ways to join the clauses:

1. With a coordinator I enjoy tennis, but I hate golf.

2. With a conjunctive adverb I enjoy tennis; however, I hate golf.

3. With a semicolon I enjoy tennis; I hate golf.

1. Compound Sentences with Coordinators

a compound sentence can be formed as follows:

Independent clause, + coordinator + independent clause

Notice that there is a comma after the first independent clause. The following
sentences illustrate the meaning of the seven “FAN BOYS” coordinators.
 for Women live longer than men, for they take better care of their health.
(The second clause gives the reason for the first clause.)

and Women follow more healthful diets, and they go to doctors more often.
(The two clauses express equal, similar ideas.)

nor Women don’t smoke as much as men do, nor do they drink as much alcohol. (Nor
means “and not.” It joins two negative independent clause. Notice that question
word order is used after nor.)

but Men may exercise harder, but they may not exercise as regularly as women do.
(The two clauses express equal, contrasting ideas.)

or Both men and women should limit the amount of fat in their diets, or they risk
getting heart disease. (The two clauses express alternative possibilities.)

yet Women used to be known as the “weaker,” yet in some ways, they are stronger
than men. (The second clause is a surprising or unexpected contrast to the first
clause.)

so Men are less cautious than women, so more men die in accidents. (The second
clause is the result of the first clause.)

2. Compound Sentences with Conjunctive Adverbs

a compound sentence can also be formed as follows:

Independent clause; + conjunctive adverb, + independent clause

Notice the punctuation: a semicolon follows the first independent clause, and a comma
follows the conjunctive adverb. Also, just like the FAN BOYS coordinators, conjunctive
adverb express relationship between the clauses. The following chart shows the
coordinators and conjunctive adverbs that express similar meanings.

Coordinators Conjunctive Sentence

Adverbs

and besides Community colleges offer preparation

furthermore for many occupations; moreover, they
moreover prepare students to transfer to a four
year college or university.
also

but however Many community colleges do not have

nevertheless dormitories; however, they provide
yet housing referral services.
nonetheless

or otherwise Students must take final exams;

otherwise, they will receive a grade of
Incomplete.

so accordingly Native and nonnative English speakers

consequently have different needs; therefore, most
schools provide separate English
hence classes for each group.
therefore
thus

Complex Sentences

A complex sentence contains one independent clause and one (or more) dependent clause
(s). In a complex sentence, one idea is generally more important than the other one. The
more important idea is placed in the independent clause, and the less important idea is
placed in the dependent clause.

There are three kinds of dependent clauses: adverb, adjective, and noun. The
following chart presents an overview of them.

Dependent Clauses

ADVERB CLAUSES

A dependent adverb clause begins with an adverbial subordinator such as when, while,
 because, although, if, so that, etc.
1. Although women in the United States could own property, they could not
vote until 1920.
2. In the United States, women could not vote until 1920 although they could
own property.
Notice that there are two possible positions for an adverb clause: before and after the
independent clause.

ADJECTIVE CLAUSES

A dependent adjective (relative) clause begins with a relative pronoun such as who, whom,
which, whose, or that, or with a relative adverb such as where or when. An adjective
clause functions as an adjective; that is, it modifies a noun or pronoun.
3. Men who are not married are called bachelors.
4. Last year we vacationed on the Red Sea, which features excellent scuba
diving.

NOUN CLAUSES

A dependent noun clause functions as a noun and begins with a wh-question word, that,
whether, or sometimes if. A dependent noun clause can be either a subject or an object.
No commas are necessary.
5. That there is a hole in the ozone layer of the earth’s atmosphere is well
known.
6. Scientists believe that excess chlorofluorocarbons in the atmosphere
are responsible for creating it.

Compound-Complex Sentences

A compound-complex sentence is a combination of two or more independent clauses and

one (or more) dependent clauses. Many combinations are possible, and their punctuation
requires careful attention.

1. I want to travel after I graduated from college; however, I had to

go to work immediately.
2. After I graduated from college, I wanted to travel, but I had to

go to work immediately.

3. I wanted to travel after I graduated from college, but I had to go

to work immediately because I had to support my family.

4. I couldn’t decide where I should work or what I should do, so I

did nothing.

Exercises!

Read the following sentences carefully and tell what types of sentences they are.

1. Some people have a perfect genius for saying nothing.

2. That which is called firmness in a parent is called obstinacy in a mule.

3. Living in the country is better than living in the city.

4. A bachelor is a souvenir to some women who found a better one at the

last minute.

5. Each video contains eight themes and explores each one with a

documentary format of location.

6. Spring is almost here, and the roses are blooming.

7. Some people are lucky enough to be born with a good sense of

direction, and even if they have only visited a place once, they will be

able to find I again years later.

8. Each book in the scheme has three sections, and each section is

divided into eight subsections.

9. The individual teacher and teacher trainer may also find them a useful

resource for in-depth treatment of topics.

10. How can a teacher best go about and designing effective listening

material for their own classes?

 Use –ed and –ing adjectives correctly

Verb forms in –ed can be used as adjectives. For example, the verbal adjectives cleaned and
cleaning come from the verb to clean.

1. The woman cleans the car.

2. The cleaning woman worked on the car.

adjective

3. The woman put the cleaned car back in the garage.

adjective

In the first example, cleans is the verb of the sentence. In the second example, cleaning is
the verbal adjective describing woman. In the third example, cleaned is a verbal adjective
describing car.

The cleaning* car ……

The cleaned* woman ……

The difference between an –ed and an –ing adjective is similar to the difference between
the active and the passive. An –ing adjective (like the active) means that the noun it
describes is doing the action. The above example about the cleaning car is not correct
because a car cannot do the action of cleaning: you cannot say that a car cleans itself. An –
ed adjective (like the passive) means that the noun it describes is receiving the action from
the verb. The above example about the cleaned woman is not correct because in this
example a woman cannot receive the action of the verb clean: it is not possible to say that
someone cleaned the woman.

Exercises!

Which one is the correct adjective in each pair.

1. Last night I read a very exciting/excited short story.

2. Priscilla listened to a boring/bored newscast on the radio.

3. Tiring/tired, Marsha went to bed early.

4. The dog’s habit of barking was extremely annoying/annoyed.

5. The burning/burned sun beat down on the desert floor.

6. The man involving/involved refused to respond to my question.

7. Working/worked women find it difficult to spend time with their families.

 8. Lisa put the polishing/polished teapot on the shelf.

9. The man was startling/startled by the noise in the bushes.

10. The woman was embarrassing/embarrassed by the behavior of her

child.

11. The frightened/frightening boy ran after his mother.

12. I want to borrow your magnifying/magnified glass.

13. These broken/breaking glasses cannot be used.

14. Have you fixed the broken/breaking window?

15. I am not interested/interesting in your story. It sounds

exaggerating/exaggerated.

2 - CLAUSES

Clauses are the main building blocks of sentences. These are two kinds of clauses:
independent and dependent.

An independent clause English grammar is easy.

- express a complete
thought.
- can be a sentence by
itself.

A dependent Clause Adverb:…because grammar is easy…

- begins with a
Adjective: …which is in Spanish…
subordinator.
- cannot be a sentence by Noun: …that grammar is easy
itself.
- is one of three types:
adverb, adjective, or
noun.

There are four kinds of sentences in English: simple, compound, complex, and
compound-complex. Each kind is punctuated differently.
 A simple sentence has one English grammar is easy.
independent clause.

A compound sentence has Grammar is easy, so I learned it quickly.

two independent clauses joined Grammar is easy; therefore, I learned it
by quickly.
- a coordinator. Grammar is easy; I learned it quickly.
- a conjunctive adverb. Note: Semicolon is possible only when
- a semicolon. the two independent clauses are closely
related in meaning.

A complex sentence has one With an adverb clause:

independent and one (or more)
dependent clauses. The
punctuation depends on the
kind of dependent clause (s).
A compound-complex sentence
has two independent clauses
and one ( or more) dependent
clauses.
Because grammar is easy, I learned it
quickly.
I learned grammar quickly because it is
easy.
With an adjective clause:
One of my favorite films is Like Water for
Chocolate, which is in Spanish.
With a noun clause:
She doesn’t agree that grammar is easy.
Because grammar is easy, I learned it
quickly, but it took me several years to
master the writing.

Clauses are the building blocks of sentences. A clause is a group of words that contains (at
least) a subject and a verb (and perhaps a complement).

The subject tells who or what did something. It is a noun, a pronoun, gerund, to infinitive.

Kinds of subjects :

Noun Word
The car hit the pedestrian.
Phrase
The large white house was sold yesterday.
 Clause
What you have said hurts him.

Pronoun I (we, you, they) went to Bali yesterday.

Gerund Swimming is my hobby.

To infinitive To write a good paragraph needs practices.

The verb often tells the action. However, sometimes a verb doesn’t tell an action.
Sometimes it just links the subject with the rest of the sentence.

Action verbs

The car hit the pedestrian.

My family lives in a two-bedroom apartment.

My roommate lost his car keys.

His girlfriend found them.

Linking verbs

Snow skiing is my favorite winter sport.

I feel sick.

You look angry.

I am lucky that my roommate is a good cook.

The most common linking verbs are be, become, feel, look, seem, smell, sound, and taste.

A complement is a word or a group of words that is necessary to complete the meaning of a

verb. In normal word order a complement follows the verb.

Alice is a ballet dancer.

Philip is depressed.

The expression that describes the subject in clauses like these is often called the
‘complement’ of the clause, or a ‘subject complement’.

A phrase is two or more words that work together as a unit and/ or as the same part of
speech and lack a subject and/ or a verb.
Kinds of Phrases :

Noun Phrase The large white house was sold yesterday.

Verb Phrase The house has been sold.

Infinitive Phrase The house to be sold is across the street.

Kinds of Phrases :

Gerund Phrase Selling the house may be difficult.

Participial Phrase Having sold the house, he was happy.

Found guilty of breaking into the house, the thief went to jail.

Prepositional Phrase The house on the next corner has been sold.
The house has been sold since last week.

Adverb Phrase They sold the house very quickly. (Quickly modifies sold and very
modifies quickly.)

Exercises!

Each of the sentence below has two ICs. Identify the subject and verb in each IC. Identify
the relationship between the two ICs: additional information, contrasting, cause-effect
information.

1. Warsaw is the largest city in Poland, and it is also very old.

2. There are many historical buildings in Warsaw, and there are many

old monuments.

3. Warsaw is an old city, but the people are very young.

4. The city was bombed during the war, so many people died.

5. Then my country, Poland, rebuilt Warsaw, and now many industries

and offices exist in the city.

6. Embassies from every country in the world are in Warsaw, so it is an

international city.

7. Warsaw is the capital of Poland, and it is the center of culture.

Dependent Clause

A dependent clause (also called subordinate clauses) cannot be punctuated as complete

sentences except in direct quotations in some transitional uses.

1. A dependent clause must be attached to an independent clause.

More than one dependent clause can be attached to the same

independent clause.

When the alarm clock rang, the boy saw

dependent clause independent clause

that it was time to get up.

dependent clause

A dependent clause may come in the middle of an independent clause

The boy who was sleeping got up

dependent clause

2. There are many subordinate conjunctions. Some introduce reasons, some

introduce times, and others introduce contrasts and conditions.

Reason because, as, since, for

Concession Although, even though, though

(unexpected
result)

Contrast while, whereas

Condition if, as if, even if, as though, unless

Purpose in order that, so that

 Time before, after, when, whenever, while, as soon as, as, since, until

Place where, anywhere, wherever, everywhere

Things which, that

People who, whom, that

Result so+adj/adv+that, such a(n)+noun+that, so

much/little+noun+that, so many/few+noun+that

Examples:

1. We cancelled our picnic because it rained.

2. Wait for a green light before you cross the street.

3. I will go straight to bed after I finish this exercise.

4. Where were you when I called?

5. My neighbors were having a party while I was trying to sleep.

6. My father doesn’t speak English although he lived in England for many years.

7. I will be happy if I win the lottery.

At first, making a speech made me so nervous that I got a stomachache before every class.

There are some things to remember about subordinate conjunctions.

A few subordinating conjunctions are also preposition.

- after my accident (preposition)

- before class (preposition)

- since their coming (preposition)

- until tomorrow (preposition)

Exercises!

Combine the clauses below. Make one of the clauses a DC by adding a subordinating
word. The blank (____________) indicates where a subordinating word might be used.
 1. ___________ accounting is very important to companies

any company should have an accounting department.

2. The directors of the company should meet with their accountants

___________ they decide how to spend their profits.

3. ___________ the entire field of accounting is interesting

two careers are most valuable: tax accounting and cost accounting.

4. Tax accounting is important to the national economy

___________ it is the primary source of income for the country.

5. ___________ the people of the country pay their taxes

the country can provide public services for the people.

6. Cost accounting is also an important career

___________ it is not as important as tax accounting.

7. Cost accounting shows the administration exactly how much products

cost

___________ the administrators can make accurate decisions about

spending.

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