NOTE(2) SENTENCE STRUCTURE

What is a sentence?

• A group words that contains a subject and a verb and expresses a complete thought. 
• A sentence begins with a capital letter and ends with a period.
• Components of a sentence:
• Subject
• Predicate
• Object

Sentence Structure

• Simple Sentence
• Compound  Sentence
• Complex  Sentence
• Compound-Complex  Sentence

Examples of sentences:

1. He is a student.
2. It is a hot today.
3. He looks tired.
4. Are you hungry?
5. Who's there?
6. Hurry!
7. The man bought a new car.
8. Does your sister live with you?
9. Where did you buy hat?
10. Don't be late.

Examples of Non sentences:

1. Is very athletic.
2. The baby sleepy.
3. The man bought.
4. When I finish my education.

Simple Sentence

• Sentence that has one subject-verb pair.
• The subject tells who or what did something. It is a noun or pronoun.

Examples:

1. The taxi hit the child. (What hit the child? -the taxi)
2. Soccer and tennis are my favorite sports? (What are my favorites? -soccer and tennis)
3. My roommate lost his keys. (Who lost his keys? -my roommate) 

Predicate:

• Describe what the subject is or does.
• Ex:
• She added.
• She added methanol to the solution. 

Object:

• The object receives the action verb. It is a noun or pronoun.
• To find an object, make a question by putting what after an action verb. (Note: This method for finding objects doesn't work with linking verbs because linking verbs do not have objects.
• The taxi hit the child. (Hit what? -the child. The child is the an object)
• My roommate lost his keys. (Lost what? -his keys. His keys is an object)
• His girlfriend found them. (Found what? -them. Them is an object)
• Not all sentences have objects:
• My family lives in a two- bedroom apartment. (Lives what? -not possible. This sentence has no object)
• The sun is shining today. (Is shining what? -not possible. This sentence has no object
• The fish didn’t smell fresh. (Didn’t smell what?  -not possible.
• This sentence has no object.

Linking Verbs:

• Link the subject with the rest of the sentence.
• Linking verbs do not have objects.
• The most common linking verbs are be, become, look, feel, seem, smell, sound, and taste.

Compound Sentence

• A compound sentence is two simple sentences connected by a comma and a coordinating conjunction.
• This is the basic formula for a compound sentence:
• Simple sentence + COORDINATING CONJUNCTION + simple sentence
• Here are 2 important points to know about compound sentences:
• A comma and a coordinating conjunction connect the two halves of a compound sentence.
• There are 7 coordinating conjunctions in English: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so – “fan boys”.

• Coordinating Conjunction: and, but, or, so.

• And- Connects 2 sentences with similar ideas. The sentences can be positive or negative.
• She doesn’t like rock music, and he doesn’t like art.
• But - Connects 2 sentences with contrasting or opposite ideas.
• She likes country music, but he hates it.
• Or- Connects 2 sentences that express alternatives or choices.
• He doesn’t like art or classical music.
• So - Connects a reason and a result.
• He works a lot, so they don’t go out very often.

Complex Sentence

• A complex sentence has one independent clause and one (or more) dependent clauses.
• When the dependent clause begins with an adverb subordinator, the clauses can usually be in any order.
• If the independent clause is first, we don’t use a comma
• If the dependent clause is first, put a comma after it.
• Ex:
• We ran for shelter as soon as it started to rain.
• As soon as it stated to rain, we ran for shelter.
• Independent clause:
• An independent clause has 1 SV pair and expresses a complete thought.
• Independent clause is just another name for a simple sentence.
• Dependent clause:
• A dependent clause does not express a complete thought, so it is not a sentence by itself.
• It is only half of a sentence.
• Together, the two clauses express a complete thought.
• It must be joined to an independent clause.

What is a topic sentence?

• Usually the first sentence
• Carries the main idea of a paragraph
• Tells what the paragraph is about
• It introduces the topic
• Will then be supported by several sentences with supporting details
• Examples:  elaborations, explanations, examples, descriptions
• It contains an idea or opinion about the topic
• The idea is called a controlling idea about the topic