Chapter One .
Sentence & Sentence Framment .
A sentence is a word group that contains a subject and a verb and
that expresses a complete thought ( or meaning ).
A sentence fragment is a group of words that looks like a sentence but does not contain
a subject and a verb or does not express a complete thought .
1- ] Sailing around the world . ( the word group lacks a subject )
2- ] The hike through the Grand Canyon . ( word group lacks verb )
3- ] After they pitched the tent . ( contains a subject and a verb
but does not express a complete thought )
Subjects and Predicates .
Sentences consist of two basic parts : subjects and predicates .
Simple Subject and Complete Subject :
The simple subject is the main word or word group that tells whom
or what the sentence is about .
The complete subject consists of all the words that tells whom or
what a sentence is about .
The four new students arrived early .
Simple subject : students
Complete subject : The four new students
A simple subject may consist of one word or several words .
Jets often break the sound barrier . ( one word )
Does Aunt Carmen own a grocery store ? ( two words )
On the library shelf was Island of the Blue Dolphins .
( six words )
The predicate of a sentence tells something about the subject .
Like the subject , the predicate may be found anywhere in a sentence .
Outside the tent was a baby bear . ( subject at the end )
Late in the night we heard a noise . ( The predicate in this sentence is
divided by the subject “we” . )
Stop right there . ( The subject in this sentence is understood to
be “you” . )
Subject
|
Predicate
|
Verb
|
Object
|
The boy
The dog
The girl
The books
|
hit
bit
read
pleased
|
the dog.
the boy .
the books .
the girl
|
|
|
|
|
Simple
Subjects And Simple Predicates .
A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought .
Every sentence has two basic parts ,a subject and a predicate . The subject is
the part of the sentence that names whom or what the sentence is about . The
predicate is the part of the sentence that says something about the subject
.Both the subject and the predicate can consist of more than one word .
The simple subject is the key noun or pronoun that tells whom or
what the sentence is about .
The simple predicate is the verb or verb phrase that expresses the
action or state of being of the subject of the sentence . A simple predicate is
a verb phrase that consists of a verb and any auxiliary or helping verbs .
Simple Subject
Simple Predicate
You find the simple subject by asking ‘who’ or ‘what’ ? about the
verb . For example , in the first sentence above , the proper name Nikki
Giovanni answers the question ‘who’ writes ?
Complete
Subjects And Complete Predicates .
In most sentences , the addition of other words and phrases to the
simple subject and the simple predicate expands or modifies the meaning of the
sentence .
The complete subject consists of the simple subject and all the
words that modify it .
The complete predicate consists of the simple predicate ( the verb
or verb phrase ) and all the words that modify it or complete its meaning .
Complete Subject Complete Predicate
The celebrated Nikki Glovanni
writes fantastic poetry .
Everyone in the French club will attend the meeting .
Chocolate chip cookies were baking in the oven .
The rush hour traffic slowed to a snail’s
pace .
Compound
Subjects And Complete Predicates .
A compound subject is made up of two or more simple subjects that
are joined by a conjunction and have the same verb . Coordinating and correlative
conjunctions are commonly used to join the subjects in a compound subject .
Books and magazines are sold at the new store .
Water or soda will be served with dinner .
Neither the bus nor the subway goes there .
Both experience and adequate training are necessary .
When there are more than two subjects in the compound subject , the
conjunction is usually used only between the last two words , and the words are
separated by commas .
Crimson , cerise , and vermillion are shades of red .
Some sentences have more than one simple predicate .
A compound predicate ( or compound verb ) is made up of two or more
verbs or verb phrases that are joined by a conjunction and have the same
subject .
Ali sat on a bench , opened his lunch box , and ate a sandwich .
In compound verbs that contain verb phrases , the auxiliary verb
may or may not be repeated before the second verb .
Cats will hiss and will scratch when frightened .
Cats will hiss and scratch when frightened .
A sentence may have both a compound subject and a compound
predicate
Comedians and musicians delight and entertain audiences .
Order
Of Subject And Predicate .
In English the subject comes before the verb in most sentences .
Some exceptions to this normal word order are discussed below .
1- ] In commands and requests the subject is usually not
stated . The predicate is the entire sentence . The pronoun you is understood
to be the subject .
[ You ] Listen ! / ( You ) please see me . / [ You ] Be careful !
2- ] Questions frequently begin with a verb or a helping
verb or the words ‘who’ , ‘whom’ , ‘what’ , ‘when’ , ‘where’ , ‘why’ , or ‘how
.
Have you read Nikki Glovanni’s poetry ?
In these cases , the subject generally follows the verb or helping
verb . To find the subject of a question , rearrange the words to form a
statement .
You have read
Nikki Glovanni’s poetry .
Identifying
Subjects and Predicates .
Identify each underlined word or group of words in the paragraph by
writing one of these labels : simple subject , complete subject , complete
subject , simple predicate , complete predicate .
Public parks(1) are assets to any town or city . (2)
They are (3) pleasant places for people of all ages . Young children
(4) use the playground equipment (5) . There are often ballparks
. (6) for softball and baseball . Some parks (7) have picnic tables
and shelter houses (8) . In large parks may be found (9) restroom
facilities (10) . Trees , grass , and colorful flowers (11)beautify
a park and make an oasis in a city (12) . The attractive green space
(13) is a welcome break from building and pavement . (14) Are there adequate
parks (15) near you ?
Order
Of Subject And Predicate
In English the subject comes before the verb in most sentences .
Some exceptions to this normal word order are discussed below .
1- ] In commands and requests , the subject is usually not
stated . The predicate is the entire sentence . The pronoun you is understood
to be the subject .
[You] Listen ! / [You] Please see me . / [You] Be careful .
2- ] Questions frequently begin with a verb or a helping
verb or the words ‘wo’ , ‘whom’ , ‘what’ , ‘when’ , ‘where’ , ‘why’ , or ‘how’
.
Have you read Nikki Giovanni’s poetry ?
In these cases , the subject generally follows the verb or helping
verb . To find the subject or a question , rearrange the words to form a
sentence .
The
Subject Of The Sentence With Inverted Order .
When the subject of a sentence follows part or all of the verb ,
the word order is said to be inverted . To find the subject of a sentence with
inverted order , restate the sentence in normal subject-verb order . A sentence
written in inverted order , in which the predicate comes before the subject ,
serves to add emphasis to the subject .
Under the moonlight sat the old cypress
tree .
Above the forest circled three hawks .
A word in a prepositional phrase is never the subject . When the
word ‘there’ or ‘here’ begins a sentence
and is followed by a form of the verb ‘to be’ , the subject follows the verb .
The word ‘there’ or ‘here’ is almost never the subject of a sentence .
Here are
the quilts from my grandmother .
There is
the book on the table .
Here are your gloves . ( inverted )
Your gloves are here . ( normal )
Were you arriving late , too ? ( inverted )
You were arriving late , too . ( normal )
In the pond swim large goldfish . ( inverted )
Large goldfish swim in the pond . { normal )
Simple Subjects and Simple Predicates .
Write each simple subject and simple predicate . Underline the simple
predicate .
1- ] The members of the track team have been striving for
perfection .
2- ]An assortment of rare books is on the shelf .
3- ] In preparation for the bar examination , Ali has been studying
around the clock .
4- ] The woodchuck slept soundly in its winter quarters underground
.
5- ] Grains of salt clung to the hot , buttered corn .
6- ] The family had agreed on their course of action .
7- ] The sandpipes in single file hopped along the shore at the
water’s edge .
8- ] our friends from Alexandria will be visiting here in June .
9- ] Not a sound could be heard that night .
10- ] The road through the woods suddenly came to an end .
Simple Subjects and Simple Predicates .
Write each simple subject and simple predicate . If a subject is
understood , write (You )
1- ] At the edge of the forest stood a watchful deer .
2- ] Please pass the salt .
3- ] Here is your first period classroom .
4- ] Devastating were the effects of the tornado !
Why was the siren blaring ?
6- ] Dip the fish in the batter and lower it into the fryer .
7- ] From the west came a driving rain .
Did you see the meteor shower last night ?
9- ] Not a scrap of food remained after the picnic .
Print your full name on the first line .
Complete Subjects and Complete Predicates .
Identify each underlined complete subject or complete predicate by
writing CS ( complete subject ) or CP ( complete predicate ) .
1- ] Several prize-winning posters are being displayed this week
.
2- ] The Aztecs of Mexico played a game similar to basketball
.
3- ] A disturbing haze appeared in the distance .
4- ] The country of France presented the Statue of Liberty to
the United States .
5- ] One of my friends gave me a recipe for making bread .
6- ] My friend Hassan has been waiting twenty minutes for
the bus .
7- ] Our trip was organized yesterday .
8- ] Adel and his team members outlined their ideas for the
debate .
9- ] The Mississippi River flows south through the center of
the United States .
10-] Our refrigerator door is covered with pictures .
Some simple predicates or verbs consist of more than one word .
Such verbs are called verb phrase ( verbs that include one or more helping
verbs ) .
Note : The words “not” and “never” are not verbs ; they are adverbs .
Adverbs are not part of a verb or verb phrase .
She is riding a horse . ( verb phrase )
The carnival has been in town for two weeks .
Should he have gotten here sooner ?
She has not written to me recently .
I will never forget her .
They do not know my cousins .
‘Not’ and ‘never’ are adverbs and not part of the verb phrase .
Compound
Subjects and Compound Verbs .
A compound subject consists of two or more subjects that are joined by a conjunction
and that have the same verb . The conjunctions most commonly used to connect
the words of a compound subject are ‘and’ , and ‘or’ .
Paris and London remain favorite tourist attractions . ( The two
parts of the compound subject have the same verb ‘remain’ connected with ‘and’.
)
The manager or the vice manager will speak at the conference . ( The two
parts of the compound subject have the same verb phrase ‘will speak’ connected
with ‘or’ . )
In sentences with a compound subject joined by ‘or’ , the verb
agrees with the subject closest to it .
My brother or my parents are coming with me .
A compound verb consists of two or more verbs that are joined by a
conjunction and that have the same subject .
The team played well but lost the game any way .
Will she mop the floor or wash the dishes ?
The rain has fallen for days and is still falling
.
A sentence may contain both ‘ a compound subject’ and ‘ a compound
verb’ .
A few vegetables and many flowers ( compound subject
) sprouted and grew ( compound verb ) in the rich soil .
Classifying
Sentences by Purpose .
1- ] A declarative sentence :
A declarative sentence makes a statement and ends with a period [
full stop ] .
I couldn’t hear what he said . ( declarative sentence )
Flowers and insects depend on one another for life . ( declarative
sentence )
2- ] An imperative sentence :
An imperative sentence gives a command or makes a request . Most
imperative sentences end with a period . A strong command ends with an
exclamation mark .
Be quiet during the play . ( command )
Please give me another piece of melon . ( request )
Stop ! ( strong command )
Notice the yellow pollen that collects on the legs and body of bee
. ( command )
The subject of a command or a request is always ‘you’ , even if
‘you’ does not appear in the sentence . In such cases ‘you’ is called the
‘understood subject’ , even when the person is addressed. by name .
( You ) Be quiet during the play .
( You ) Please give me another piece of melon .
3- ] An interrogative sentence :
An interrogative sentence asks a question and ends with a question
mark .
Did the surf board cost much ?
When did you return from your camping trip ?
Have you ever seen a talking computer ?
4- ] An exclamatory sentence :
An exclamatory sentence shows excitement , wonder ,
or expresses strong feeling and ends with an exclamation point (
mark ) .
How terrifying that movie was !
What a remarkable insect the bee is !
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