Sentence Structure Notes
Sentence Requirements:
In order for a sentence to be complete, it must contain three key components.
- It must contain a subject
- It must contain a predicate
- It must express a complete thought
SUBJECT – the subject in the sentence is who or what the sentence is about.
- The boy ran down the street. (subject is “the boy”)
PREDICATE – the predicate is what is happening to the subject.
- The boy ran down the street. (predicate is “ran down the street”)
CLAUSES
Sentences are made up of clauses. There are two types of clauses.
- Independent Clause – contains a subject, predicate, and expresses complete thought. An independent clause can stand alone as a sentence. Some sentences have more than one clause.
- The boy ran down the street. (1 clause)
- Jimmy went to the store to buy milk, and he stopped by the video store on the way home. (2 clauses)
- Dependent Clause – contains a subject and predicate, but it does not express a complete thought. Dependent clauses need an independent clause in order to complete a sentence.
- Whenever I go to the mall (this is a dependent clause therefore it is not a complete sentence. It needs help from an independent clause)
- Whenever I go to the mall, I stop at Jugo Juice for a drink. (1 dependent clause supported by an independent clause)
TYPES OF SENTENCES
There are three basic types of sentences:
- Simple Sentence – contains one independent clause.
- The boy ran down the street.
- Compound Sentence – contains two independent clauses joined by a conjunction (and, but, so)
- The boy ran down the street, so he could catch the ice cream truck.
- Complex Sentence – contains one independent and one dependent clause.
- Whenever the boy hears the ice cream truck, he runs frantically after it.
STYLES OF SENTENCES
There are four different styles of sentences.
- Declarative – makes a statement
- Imperative – gives a command
- Interrogative - asks a question
- Exclamatory – shows strong emotion or surprise (ends with “!”)